With the April 30 deadline being literally right around the corner, home buyers that are hoping to qualify for the federal tax credits of $8,000 for first-timers or $6,500 for owners wishing to move up need to get moving.
However, after the two federal stimulus incentives expire, home buyers who don't have a binding contract in place by the April 30th deadline, there is still a good chance that there will be plenty of incentives still available.
As an example, builders will most likely provide free options and upgrades, offer to help with closing costs all in an effort to keep the momentum of sales going well into the spring and summer home-buying seasons.
Most likely builder incentives will not be as prevalent in the new-home market like they were back in December 2008, but there are almost always giveaways available.
National Association of Home Builders director of economic services Steve Melman says, "Incentives don't disappear, even in the best of times. Even in the good times, builders will throw things in."
According to the NAHB almost a year and a half ago nearly 3 out of 4 builders were cutting their prices trying to dump their large backlogs of finished unsold homes.
Also during that time, many builders were trying to get buyers off the fence by offering no-cost options such as fireplaces, loaded kitchens as well as finished basements.
Today, there are many fewer empty new homes sitting unsold and new-home inventories at 40 year lows. While some real estate professionals believe that there is no longer a reason to offer incentives, others feel that the recession has hit builders so hard that now is the time they should start beefing up their bottom lines.
Steve Melman went on to say that inventories are so incredibly low that builders have stopped building.
But, there are many who think that incentives could make a comeback, especially in some of the hardest-hit markets where there is still a large supply of foreclosures or an oversupply of existing homes on the market or both.