SPOKANE -- Several real estate agencies in Spokane are saying if there was ever a time to buy a home, it's now. Agents say there appears to be just as many homes in Spokane on the market compared to this time last year. The difference this year is many more of those homes are selling.
Helen Hubble closed on her first home last November after looking at more than 30 in Spokane.
"The tax credit was a nice incentive, because knowing you are going to get $8,000 back, it made it more realistic that you could do the things you wanted to do and you could fix up things," said Hubble.
Kara DeBill, a realtor with Windermere, helped Hubble find her home. DeBill says currently, there are approximately 2,600 listings in the Spokane area compared to this time last year. But the first home buyer tax credit of $8,000 has allowed for more sales so far in 2010 along with interest rates that are at an historic low.
Bob Tomlinson has been in real estate for 42 years. He is the CEO of Tomlinson Realtors which recently partnered with Caldwell Banker. Tomlinson says the government incentives in forms of tax credits, tax reductions, and a large number of homes for sale in Spokane has made this a buyers market.
Homes that are selling the most are those priced under $200,000. That is typically the price range for first time home buyers.
