First-Time Homebuyers Wading Into Market
Low Prices, Tax Incentives Make Buying Attractive
Updated: 7:00 am CST February 19, 2009
MADISON, Wis. -- For a long time, the housing market has looked as bad as some Wisconsin winters, but some local first-time buyers say they think the worst is over, and they're ready to open a new door.
VIDEO: Watch The Report"There's so many incentives out there for first-time home buyers," said Kris Kalb, who's in the process of finalizing his first home. "So it just made the most logical sense to buy right now."Kalb said he found a sweet deal."Probably five years ago, we would not have been able to afford it," said Kalb. "It would have been priced much higher."Kalb said lessons learned from the recent housing crisis kept him grounded."There are so many homes out there you just fall in love with," said Kalb. "It's like, you look at this $750,000 house and you're like, 'This is great. But no wait, can you afford it?' So you have to step back."As Kalb gets set to close next month, Brian Hahn is just getting started, hoping the market has finally reached its bottom."And with the new stimulus package going through, that should help out home buying," said Hahn. "And that should keep dropping the prices on homes, and making it a great time to get in the market."Hahn is attending a seminar tailored to first-time buyers, ready to test the market."Obviously, there's a lot of inventory out there," said Steve Baumann, a mortgage consultant, who's conducting the seminar. "So there are going to see motivated sellers that are going to offer them incentives to buy their home in the form of closing costs concessions, rate buy-down, not to mention the fact that prices are great right now.""And that's why it's such an ideal time," said Kalb. "Because I think the bottom has been seen, and now things can stabilize and get back to normal."Another huge incentive for first-time homebuyers is the $8,000 tax credit. It's not as much as the $15,000 expected two weeks ago, but it's an improvement over the existing $7,500 credit, which really acts like an interest-free loan. Homeowners will not have to pay back the new credit.
VIDEO: Watch The Report"There's so many incentives out there for first-time home buyers," said Kris Kalb, who's in the process of finalizing his first home. "So it just made the most logical sense to buy right now."Kalb said he found a sweet deal."Probably five years ago, we would not have been able to afford it," said Kalb. "It would have been priced much higher."Kalb said lessons learned from the recent housing crisis kept him grounded."There are so many homes out there you just fall in love with," said Kalb. "It's like, you look at this $750,000 house and you're like, 'This is great. But no wait, can you afford it?' So you have to step back."As Kalb gets set to close next month, Brian Hahn is just getting started, hoping the market has finally reached its bottom."And with the new stimulus package going through, that should help out home buying," said Hahn. "And that should keep dropping the prices on homes, and making it a great time to get in the market."Hahn is attending a seminar tailored to first-time buyers, ready to test the market."Obviously, there's a lot of inventory out there," said Steve Baumann, a mortgage consultant, who's conducting the seminar. "So there are going to see motivated sellers that are going to offer them incentives to buy their home in the form of closing costs concessions, rate buy-down, not to mention the fact that prices are great right now.""And that's why it's such an ideal time," said Kalb. "Because I think the bottom has been seen, and now things can stabilize and get back to normal."Another huge incentive for first-time homebuyers is the $8,000 tax credit. It's not as much as the $15,000 expected two weeks ago, but it's an improvement over the existing $7,500 credit, which really acts like an interest-free loan. Homeowners will not have to pay back the new credit.Copyright 2009 by Channel 3000. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
