Inman

Top 10 states for pending tax credit closings

The National Association of Realtors continued to lobby lawmakers today to pass legislation that would extend by three months the deadline for closing on a home purchase in order to claim the federal homebuyer tax credit.

Unless Congress extends the deadline, homebuyers who were under contract by April 30 must close by Wednesday in order to claim the credit.

"We are holding our breath," said NAR spokesman Lucien Salvant, with lobbyists concentrating on the Senate. There are basically two options — attach an amendment to a noncontroversial bill that’s passage is certain, or pass standalone legislation.

The Senate on June 16 amended a bill that would have extended the deadline for closing to Sept. 30, but other provisions of HR 4213, the "American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010," sparked a larger debate about deficit spending. Debate over the bill isn’t expected to resume until after Congress comes back from its July 4 recess (see story).

NAR estimates as many as 180,000 homebuyers who were under contract by April 30 may miss the June 30 closing deadline. To prod lawmakers into find a way to extend the deadline, NAR released a breakdown of how many home purchases are affected in each state.

Following is a list of states, ranked by volume of sales under contract by April 30 that may miss the closing deadline to receive the tax credit:

State

# sales that may miss closing deadline

California

17,700

Texas

15,340

Florida

14,830

New York

9,190

Ohio

8,510

Illinois

7,030

Michigan

6,470

Georgia

6,270

Pennsylvania

5,830

Arizona

5,440

North Carolina

4,890

New Jersey

4,300

Massachusetts

3,930

 Tennessee

3,910

Virginia

3,890

Nevada

3,800

Minnesota

3,760

Missouri

3,600

Indiana

3,560

Colorado

3,390

Washington

3,190

Oklahoma

2,760

Wisconsin

2,690

Maryland

2,630

Alabama

2,590

Kentucky

2,540

South Carolina

2,460

Arkansas

2,090

Oregon

2,090

Iowa

2,030

Kansas

1,840

Louisiana

1,800

Connecticut

1,770

Mississippi

1,530

Idaho

1,270

New Mexico

1,160

Utah

1,130

Nebraska

1,110

West Virginia

940

Maine

840

Alaska

830

Alaska

830

Montana

760

Hawaii

710

New Hampshire

690

Rhode Island

500

South Dakota

500

North Dakota

460

Delaware

400

Vermont

400

Wyoming

390

Washington, D.C.

300

Source: National Association of Realtors.