Pulte Homes Inc., one of the country's largest home builders, says it will match a new $7,500 tax credit for first-time home buyers with its own $7,500 discount on homes.The goal of the offer, which the company plans to extend to any buyer of a Pulte home, is "to draw attention not only to our homes but to the housing market in general," said Richard J. Dugas, Pulte's president and chief executive.
Home builders lobbied hard for the tax credit, which was signed into law last week as part of a large housing-rescue package. Now, the industry is working to spread the word to consumers, hoping the tax break will help pull the housing market out of the doldrums.
Sandy Dunn, president of the National Association of Home Builders, says many would-be first-time buyers are in a strong position to purchase a home today, but remain jittery about the market.
"This tax credit will help get them off the fence," she said Monday in a conference call with reporters.
First-time home buyers account for 40% of all buyers, according to the NAHB. They are seen by the industry as the key to reviving the housing market because, unlike existing homeowners, they don't have to unload a home before buying a new one.
The tax credit applies to primary residences bought by individuals making up to $75,000 a year or married couples with combined income of up to $150,000 a year.
To qualify as a first-time home buyer under the law, a person can't have owned a home in three years. Only home purchases closed between April 8, 2008, and July 1, 2009, will qualify for the credit.
The home-builders' lobby group launched a Web site to promote the credit, at www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com. It has received 57,000 visitors since last Wednesday, says Rob Dietz, the NAHB's director of tax issues.
By: Jessica Holzer
Wall Street Journal; August 6, 2008
