TARPON SPRINGS, FL--How far can an 8 thousand dollar first time home buyer tax credit go? Just ask 23 year old Laura Gainey and her one year old toddler, Liamb."That's the only way I was able to buy a house." “We were living in a one bedroom apartment sharing a room with all this stuff and I wanted him to have a room to play in,” Gainey says.
The single mother closed on her Tarpon Springs home in August thanks in large part to that tax credit. A credit that lawmakers were hoping to extend but millions of dollars in fraudulent claims could spoil that.
"Taxpayers claiming the credit include those: who already owned a home, who had not yet bought a home, and who are children-some as young as four years old, says Rep. John Lewis. (D)-GA.
But, Bill Sanchez with the Tampa Bay Community Development Corporation says he's seen how the money has helped dozens of people, just like Laura, in our community.
"Our applications for pre-purchase educational counseling have increased dramatically since the beginning of the year basically because of the 8 thousand dollar credit," he says.
Sanchez says with some fine tuning and stricter guidelines he would like to see the credit extended and get into the hands of those who truly need it.
And, Gainey agrees. She knows there are other people like her out there with children who would love a place to call home.
"It's a shame that they're ruining it like that," she says.
As it stands now the tax credit expires November 30th. Some lawmakers had considered increasing the refund up to 15 thousand dollars, and extending it all home buyers. Tonight, we're not sure what effect the fraud will have on any of that.
