Florida Open House Weekend: Emerald Coast

5 Reasons to Participate in the Florida Open House Weekend:

Reason No. 1 Use Uncle Sam’s money now, or lose the opportunity.
The chance to benefit from the federal government’s tax credit incentive for homebuyers expires 19 days after the Florida Open House Weekend. Your Florida dream home must be under a purchase contract by April 30, 2010, or you won’t be eligible for a tax credit – up to $8,000 for first-time homebuyers and up to $6,500 for current homeowners. Once a home is under contract, the buyer has until June 30, 2010, to complete the transaction. For more information about the tax credit, go to HouseLogic.com.

Reason No. 2 Now is the time to buy.
Homebuyers can get more bang for their bucks due to the tax credit, mortgage rates are still near historical lows, and there’s a wide variety of housing options to consider across the state. Most economists say that it’s not a matter of “if” mortgage rates will go up, it’s “when,” and they predict that will happen sooner rather than later. Plus, sales of existing homes in Florida rose 44% at the end of 2009 compared to the previous year, another sign that now’s the time to act, while a great selection is still available. Need to see it to believe it? Go to EmeraldCoastHomesOnline.com and search your preferred area. The available inventory may surprise you.

Reason No. 3 Find a Realtor through the Florida Open House Weekend.
This event offers buyers the opportunity to see Realtors in action, talk to them, and find a friendly, knowledgeable expert to help guide them through the challenges of the current marketplace. Want to find a Realtor first? You can search for a Realtor at EmeraldCoastHomesOnline.com.

Reason No. 4 Save time and effort in your search for a new home.
The Florida Open House Weekend provides a convenient way for buyers to target a number of Open Houses in their preferred locations and areas of interest, all in a single weekend. Make sure you search available open houses at EmeraldCoastOpenHouse.com and use the mapping feature to get complete driving directions to all of the locations you want to see.

Reason No. 5 Join the fund and check out the neighbors.
Who doesn’t enjoy looking at festive Open Houses? There’s a reason why so many shows about homes and real estate are popular on TV. The Florida Open House Weekend is for everyone. Come spend a pleasant day walking through the neighborhood, see what’s for sale, and maybe spark a few decorating ideas along the way.