California Home Buyers to Get $10,000 Tax Credit

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose last term in office will soon be terminating for good (we have limits, you know), has signed into law a measure that he hopes will pump some life into the state's all but dead housing market. The new legislation, AB183, will provide a tax credit up to $10,000 to Californians who buy their first home or a newly constructed home. The tax credit goes into effect on May 1st.

Buyers who time it just right may also be able to qualify for the federal $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit, for a total of $18,000 in write-offs. The federal tax credit is set to expire soon, though: contracts must be signed by April 30 and deals closed upon by June 30.