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Have you heard of Chicago's TaxSmart Program?

In an economic climate such as we are facing now, it is great to know what tools you have at your disposal to reduce your cost of living. Chicago is offering a program called TaxSmart that many home owners do not know about. This program is a "Mortgage Credit Certificate" (MCC) that provides qualified home buyers with a federal income tax credit. This is a tax credit which directly reduces the amount of taxes that qualified home owners are due. This program would earn a home buyer an MCC to reduce their taxes by 20% of the interest paid on a mortgage. The beautiful thing is that this credit can be claimed every year as long as you still live in the home that is financed through TaxSmart.

Here are the guidelines laid down by federal law that a "qualified home buyer" must satisfy:

• First-Time Homebuyer - The definition of this is the same as a first time home buyer for the 8k tax credit. As long as you haven't owned a primary residence in the past three years you qualify as a "First Time Homebuyer".
• Target Area Purchase - Even if you are not a First-Time Homebuyer you can qualify for this program if you buy a home in one of the designated target areas. (link to this map provided below).
• Income - As with most programs such as this it is aimed to help low to moderate income families and there are limits to the income that a household can earn and still qualify. There is a chart that is also provided in the link below.
• Purchase Price - There is also a cap on the purchase price of homes financed under TaxSmart.
• Principal Residence - To summorize you must occupy the home within 60 days of your purchase and must use it as your primary residence.
• One-to-Four-Family Home - This program allows you to buy up to a 4 unit building as long as one of the units is your primary residence. The building must have been first occupied for residential purposes at least five years before applying for the program.
• New Mortgage - This program is meant to encourage people to buy new homes with new loans. You cannot replace your existing mortgage on your existing home.
• Program Area - This program is limited to within the city limits of Chicago.

***VERY IMPORTANT*** - These MCCs will only be handed out on a first-come, first-serve basis.

There are some other requirements such as pre-purchase counseling. Check out this link for a map of the Target Areas as well as more program specifics.