Congress just passed an expanded version of the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit that was set to expire on November 30. “The new version of the tax credit has the potential to stimulate the housing market even more than the old version due to the fact that more people will qualify under the new rules,” said Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers.

Even though the housing crisis has and will continue to consume the thoughts of most Amercians for the near future, there is an additional real estate problem that the nation is weathering. This is the precipitous drop in commercial property values that began in the middle of 2007.

While there may be ample reason to fear that the Chinese will subvert our economy by dumping U.S. dollars, there is greater reason to fear the drywall that they sent with no malice aforethought.

If you are a first time home buyer who is frantically searching for that dream home in hopes of making the November 30 deadline, you can relax. It appears that the homebuyer tax credit will be extended until at least April 30, 2010.

A new report today stated that the government's first-time home buyer $8,000 tax credit has spurred a significant amount of sales this year, estimated to be as many as 400,000 by the time the program ends at the end of November. At the same time, news reports this morning state that Senate negotiators have reached a tentative deal on extending and slightly expanding the tax credit.

“A billion here, a billion there, sooner or later it adds up to real money.” That famous quote, attributed to the late Senator Everett Dirksen, (R, Illinois), might well apply today to the dollars currently being expended on the very popular $8,000 home buyer tax credit.

Families can now pool their kindness together to help out a family member take advantage of a home purchase and the $8000 first time homebuyer tax incentive.

As we move into the last quarter of 2009, home sales figures have risen on average all over the nation, and home prices have inched up in 140 metro areas. The overall consensus is that the housing market has bottomed. However, most economists opine that the market will not get off its bottom and move into forward motion until 2010.

Here is a simple foreclosure investment rule of thumb. While it’s certainly possible to make money flipping foreclosures, it takes time, effort, and on many occasions, a good deal of rehab work. Selling them quickly often requires the services of a real estate agent. But, to cite a cliché, it’s not rocket science.

Based on current sales figures, the U.S. housing market is having a wonderful time. Prices of existing homes show gains of 3.5% or more since April, and numbers of homes sold are 15% above the lows set in November of last year. Even experts as knowledgeable as Robert Case, of the famed S&P/Case Shiller index, were surprised by the resilience of the housing market over this last year.

If you are hoping to buy a home and enjoy the $8,000 tax credit, you’d better hurry, because November 30th is approaching rapidly. Since most home sales are taking at least 45 days from start to close it’s going to be a photo finish for those of you who currently out looking for that perfect property.

Back in January of this year, before the major media mentioned it, I told readers that bidding wars had erupted over short sales and foreclosures in South Florida. I also mentioned that these properties were often selling above their asking prices, and that home prices seemed not only to be stabilizing, but on occasion, to be rising. In addition, I noted that home sellers were conceding less and less on price.