Real estate professionals in the trenches of America’s current real estate doldrums say that Congress’ extension of the homebuyer’s tax credit to include current homeowners probably wasn’t enough to motivate them. Last fall, there was an extension of the popular first-time homebuyer’s tax credit, and Congress expanded it to include current homeowners. Those who wanted to trade up and buy a larger home could qualify for up to $6,500 in tax credits, but industry analysts say that it has had little overall impact on home sales. “I don’t think most people have any idea about it, or just don’t understand it. No one’s talking about it,” said one Omaha real estate agent. Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, said that the current homeowner’s tax credit program “may not be sufficient to really move people to list their houses for sale and buy another.” Yun estimates that the tax credit program stimulated more than two million home sales in 2009, beating his initial estimate of 1.5 million. He believes that the soon-to-expire program could have inspired even more home sales across the country if the program had a longer extension and the tax credit for current homeowners had been larger. He and other analysts believe that the costs of buying a new home outweighed the $6,500 benefit and discouraged buyers from taking advantage of the program. Although other real estate markets are struggling, the prices of Louisville homes for sale have stayed relatively steady. They didn’t escalate to stratospheric highs during the boom years and remained insulated from the steep drops that are plaguing other markets. If you’re thinking about buying or selling a home in the Louisville area and are looking for a Louisville realtor or discount real estate broker, call 502.744.9504 today and speak with the real estate pro at Louisville Properties. Resource link: http://www.latimes.com/business/custom/yourmoney/la-fi-harney4-2010apr04,0,3304615.story