House Bill 261 Passes the Senate

Great news for the Georgia housing industry as Bill 261 has passed through the Senate and is on its way to a conference committee. The committee is in charge of working out the differences between the Senate version and the House version to create a decent compromise that incorporates factors from both. Hopefully we will see this updated version of the bill very soon and it will easily pass both the House and Senate again.

House Bill 261 authorizes a $3,600 home buyer tax credit for a six month period of time for the purchase of any single-family residence, including houses, townhomes and condos. This is not restricted to first-time homebuyers like the current $8,000 home buyer tax credit, and, in fact, is in addition to that credit. So first time home buyers in Atlanta would be eligible for a total of $11,600 in incentives for purchasing a new home. The legislation would be a great boost the housing market, which has already begun to see some positive numbers in the past month.

Georgia has had is share of foreclosures, but some of the best deals on the market currently are luxury homes, and golf club community homes that are being sold for pennies on the dollar as a foreclosure.  The GA real estate market has seen an unexpected increase in the sale of resale homes, due to the unbelievable prices, and historically low interest rates.

Here is a prime example of a foreclosed home in Roswell, GA  that is being SOLD for less than half of original price when built in 2007.

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/reb/1087754089.html