Source: Market Watch —
The midterm U.S. elections are coming. And elections have consequences for the housing market, according to a new report from investment bank Cowen.
The report by Cowen’s Jaret Seiberg noted that the Nov. 8 elections will determine which party controls the House and the Senate for the next two years.
And the result will then impact a number of issues related to housing finance policy, he said.
First-time buyer tax credit gone
Assuming Republicans “will at a minimum gain control of the House,” Seiberg wrote, that likely means no first-time buyer tax credit.
The tax credit was, through a revision of the Internal Revenue Service tax code, to give first-time home buyers up to $15,000 in refundable federal tax credits. Democrats tried to pass the tax credit last year through a so-called reconciliation bill, Seiberg noted. But a new reconciliation bill is unlikely, he added.
Unlikely to get funds for rehab housing
The original reconciliation package had another big housing component — rehab housing.
