# first time home buyer tax credit **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 30, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751 "2009-10-30T18:05:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![satoridt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@satoridt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/satoridt)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/1 "2009-10-30T18:05:59Z")
My roommate and I just bought a house. Instead of separately buying crappy housed we both signed the mortgage and bought a slightly less crappy house. Since we are both first time home buyers and are both on the mortgage, will we both get the $8,000? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/2 "2009-10-30T18:15:04Z")
> [@satoridt](#): > > My roommate and I just bought a house. Instead of separately buying crappy housed we both signed the mortgage and bought a slightly less crappy house. Since we are both first time home buyers and are both on the mortgage, will we both get the $8,000? If you signed the mortgage with 100 of your friends, do you think the gov’t would pay out $800,000? ---
**Author:** ![J\_Cubed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@J\_Cubed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/J_Cubed)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/3 "2009-10-30T18:17:27Z")
> [@satoridt](#): > > My roommate and I just bought a house. Instead of separately buying crappy housed we both signed the mortgage and bought a slightly less crappy house. Since we are both first time home buyers and are both on the mortgage, will we both get the $8,000? No, but you two get to decide how to split the $8,000, regardless of how you split the down or monthly payments. ---
**Author:** ![satoridt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@satoridt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/satoridt)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/4 "2009-10-30T18:18:15Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > If you signed the mortgage with 100 of your friends, do you think the gov’t would pay out $800,000? no, but does that mean the question’s not worth asking? ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/5 "2009-10-30T19:02:52Z")
> [@satoridt](#): > > no, but does that mean the question’s not worth asking? It seems you have answered your own question, but here it is from the horse’s mouth: > [@](#): > > Q. How much is the credit? > > A. The credit is 10 percent of the purchase price of the home, **with a maximum available credit of $7,500 ($8,000 if you purchased your home in 2009) for either a single taxpayer** or a married couple filing a joint return, but only half of that amount for married persons filing separate returns. The full credit is available for homes costing $75,000 or more ($80,000 if purchased after Dec. 31, 2008, and before Dec. 1, 2009). [Link.](http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=206291,00.html) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/6 "2009-10-30T19:24:21Z")
That quote from the linked page doesn’t seem to directly address the idea of unmarried co-owners, but this one does: > [@](#): > > Q. If two unmarried people buy a house together, how do they determine how much each may take of the credit? > > A. IRS Notice 2009-12 provides guidance for allocating the first-time homebuyer credit between taxpayers who are not married. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit/515751/7 "2009-10-30T20:32:47Z")
> [@satoridt](#): > > no, but does that mean the question’s not worth asking? Not that particular question, since it’s self-evident what the answer is once you think about it. I submitted my credit claim via US mail, with the direct deposit option. I was credited significantly faster than a friend who submitted her claim online.