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Find or Refer a Contractor in Tyler

Andy Woods Elementary School Area

November 30th, 2009

When relocating to Tyler Texas it is sometimes hard to picture what a house may look like simply from the real estate listing emails you receive from your Tyler realtor. The way me and my wife found our house was by driving out to a neighborhood and looking at homes we liked. We would occasionally find a house that was for sale and it would sometimes be just what we were looking for.

You can use an MLS search tool to look through homes in a certain zip code. You will be able to narrow down your choices this way but it is always worth getting into your car and going to areas that are known to be good locations to live in. The Andy Woods Elementary school area in Tyler Texas is a great affordable location in Tyler to buy a home. There are several moderately priced neighborhoods in this area and if you work in Tyler you will likely not have a very far drive to work.

There is one house close to Andy Woods I would recommend staying away from. One of the houses has a large sign in the front yard because of a land dispute. The sign is about 10 feet tall by 5 feet and has a large map of the diputed property line. What is weird is that the property line in dispute crosses into his property by a couple feet. The fence was built several years ago and there just isn’t anything legally the guy could do anyway to get the lady to move her fence and storage shed.

The guy in question doesn’t look like he plans to budge anytime soon and the little old lady in the house he is disputing with I can’t see paying to have her fence and storage shed picked up and moved. When considering moving into this area of Tyler this is the only real problem I have seen in the area. There are a few little cottage styled houses that are really small as well that would probably go for around $70,000 – $90,000. A small cottage home would be great for a single first time home buyer. A couple with no kids could also find a pretty decent small affordable home in this area of Tyler as well. There are some larger homes in this area as well but it is good that you have your pick at different price ranges on houses in the same area.

There is a park nearby Andy Woods called Pollard Park and it has a Tennis Court and two nearby churches. The soccer fields are big enough to fly a Kite and the park has a fairly good sized playground. This year the Obama Administration is offering a $8,000 first time home buyers tax credit you don’t have to pay back. Because of the state of the economy I am not sure if this credit is a smart thing to give out right now but since it is available I would jump on it as I don’t think it will be around much longer.

I have seen people walk around the park with their dogs, some drive golf balls there in the evenings. There are about 6 tennis courts available with a large fence around them to prevent your tennis ball from going out into the road.

The Andy Woods area with the park and good elementary school system offers a low crime rate, moderately priced Tyler homes and gives you a central location in South Tyler. Your drive to Best Buy is about the same drive time as it would take to get to the court house or Tyler mall. For the location, low crime rate, school, and park I think you will get a very good deal for a home in this area of Tyler.

Tax Credits For First Time Home Buyers in Tyler TX

November 23rd, 2009

First-Time Home Buyer Federal Tax Credit

For those who want to save a little money on your taxes this year and who would ALSO like to buy a house you can still get that $8,000 first time home buyers credit even though it was scheduled to expire November 30 2009. You now have quite a few months longer to qualify for the first time home buyers tax credit and this credit is a little different than the $7500 credit in 2008. In 2008 you could receive a $7500 tax credit but you have to pay it back over a 15 year time period. The tax credit going on now is free money you never have to pay back but it isn’t exactly free as some poor tax payer out their is paying for your welfare entitlement mindset which is why many of us feel a little anxious right now with the way this economy is going. The new law allows the credit to extend until April 30th 2010 and you must close on the house by June 30 2010. I recommend not putting off on buying your Tyler Texas home until the last minute.

The government considers you a first-time Tyler home buyer if you have not owned a home for at least three years before the date you settle on your new home. This credit will not work if you are buying investment property. You must be living in this home as your primary homestead or you will not be able to get this credit. If you want to try and get into the rental or vacation property business this credit will not be able to be applied for that purpose..

For first-time Tyler TX home buyers, the credit is 10% of the purchase price of the home, up to $8,000. So, if your house costs $80,000 or more, you can qualify for the maximum fedreal home buyers tax credit.

You do not have to repay this tax credit, as long as you live in your house for at least three years. If you sell or move out before three years, you have to repay the money as extra tax on your tax return for the year you sell or move.

If you are looking for a good real estate company in Tyler Texas we used Keller Williams and were very satisfied with their help in getting us into a house we liked at an affordable price.

Federal Income Tax Credit For Longtime Homeowners

This credit is available to qualifying home buyers who sign a binding contract by April 30, 2010, and who close on a new home between Nov. 7, 2009, and June 30, 2010. To qualify, you must have continuously owned and lived in a home for at least five of the eight years leading up to the purchase of a new home.

If you have owned and lived in your current home for at least five years, for example, you can qualify. If you bought the home you’re living in now less than five years ago, however, you won’t qualify.

The credit is 10% of the purchase price, up to $6,500. As with the first-time-buyer credit, this one is available only for the purchase of a principal residence, not a vacation home or rental property. And if you sell the place or move out within three years, you have to pay back the credit on your tax return for the year you sell or move. Homes that cost more than $800,000 are ineligible for the credit.

Income-eligibility rules are the same as for the first-time-buyer credit. The right to claim the credit disappears as adjusted gross income rises between $125,000 and $145,000 on a single return and between $225,000 and $245,000 for married couples filing joint returns.

To get your tax credit you’ll need to file a Form 5405 to claim the credit and include a copy of your settlement statement (such as the HUD 1 form) to prove that you bought the house. The settlement statement was not required for deals that closed before Nov. 7.