We all see evidence every day that the economy is still quite fragile. Therefore, mortgage rate hikes are a long way off. According to MBSQuoteline, “President Obama signed into law an expanded Homebuyer Tax Credit bill, which extended the deadlines and added a new $6,500 credit.” Many provisions are effective immediately:

Homebuyers who owned their primary residence for five out of the last eight years can claim the $6,500 tax credit for purchases made after November 6th.

The extended income limits are now for both first-time homebuyers and repeat homebuyers.

The extended income limit for couples filing jointly is now $225,000, with the credit phased out over the next $20,000 in income.

These new limits cannot be applied retroactively to deals completed before November 7th.