Isakson Criticizes Senate’s Refusal to Stimulate Housing Market by Expanding
Tax Credit for Homebuyers
State & National Politics |
8/6/09 U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today criticized
the Senate’s rejection of his amendment to stimulate housing
demand and boost the economy by expanding the first-time
homebuyer tax credit to a $15,000 tax credit for any buyer of
any home. The Senate rejected Isakson’s amendment, which he
sought to attach to the “cash for clunkers” bill, by a vote of
47 to 50. Isakson then voted against final passage of the “cash for
clunkers” bill. “I’m disappointed in this vote on the homebuyer tax credit,
because every American is suffering in this economy. Every
American deserves for Congress to look for positive incentives
to bring the housing market back, restore their equity, improve
their values and return us back to a vibrant economy,” Isakson
said. “The ‘cash for clunkers’ program demonstrates what
I’ve known all my life, which is positive incentives cause
positive results. The problem we have, though, is it was not the
automobile market that disappeared first in America. It was the
collapse of housing market.” Specifically, Isakson’s amendment would have increased the
maximum amount of the credit from $8,000 to $15,000 and expanded
the current tax credit so that it applies to any buyer of any
home, not just first-time buyers. The amendment also would have
eliminated the income caps of $75,000 for an individual and
$150,000 for a couple under the current tax credit so that there
is no income limit for eligibility. The amendment would have
extended the tax credit for one year from date of enactment and
would have still allowed homebuyers to claim the credit on their
2009 tax return for purchases made in 2010. Finally, the
amendment would have required the expansion of the tax credit
ultimately to be paid for by stimulus funds. Isakson’s amendment was endorsed by the National Association
of Home Builders and the National Association of Realtors. Isakson has pushed hard for a tax credit for homebuyers since
January 2008 because he knows that it will work. In the
mid-1970s, America faced a similar housing crisis when a period
of easy credit and loose underwriting flooded the market with
new construction. Interest rates rose, the economy slowed
and America was left with a three-year supply of vacant
homes. Congress responded by passing a $2,000 tax credit for
anyone purchasing a new home for their principal
residence. Isakson, who was in the real estate industry in
Atlanta at the time, says the results were clear and swift as
home values stabilized, housing inventory dropped and the market
recovered. Isakson spent more than three decades in the real estate
business, beginning his business career in 1967 when he opened
the first Cobb County, Ga., office of a small, family-owned real
estate business, Northside Realty. Isakson later served as
president of Northside for 20 years, presiding over the
company’s growth into the largest independent residential real
estate brokerage company in the Southeast and one of the largest
in America. |
