The association saluted the introduction of the Development Homeownership Tax Credit Act, S. 859, which would help as many as 50,000 families a year achieve the American dream of homeownership. Companion legislation known as the Renewing the Dream Tax Credit Act, H.R. 1549, was introduced in the House last week.

Modeled after the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, the legislation is expected to generate nearly $2 billion in private investment annually for the construction and/or rehabilitation of approximately 50,000 homes for sale to lower-income families. The credit is also expected to produce 122,000 construction and related jobs, $4 billion in wages, and $2 billion in federal, state and local tax revenue. The program would provide investors with a tax credit of up to 50 percent of the cost of developing each home.

The bill is similar to legislation that was introduced in both the House and Senate last session and gained the support of a bipartisan majority of Congress. The association is part of a coalition of more than 40 housing and community organizations that back the measure.

"The homeownership tax credit will help thousands of families a year purchase a home by bridging the gap between the development cost and the price at which these homes can be sold in many lower-income communities," said the association's president, Al Mansell. "As Realtors, we're committed to helping every family achieve the American dream of homeownership. We look forward to working with Congress and the administration to enact homeownership tax credit legislation this year."

In addition to promoting homeownership, the National Association of Realtors has also called on Congress to act quickly on legislation that would alleviate problems created by new do-not-fax rules for consumers and businesses alike.

The association strongly supports efforts to limit unsolicited faxes, including the creation of a new consumer right to opt out of receiving faxes even from those with whom the recipient has an established business relationship. However, the association believes that the Federal Communications Commission went too far by requiring signed, written permission before sending faxes. The association estimates that Realtors would have been forced to create and store more than 66 million permission forms to sustain the more than 6 million home sales transactions that occurred last year.

"Unless Congress acts soon, Realtors will not be able to fax property listings to consumers who call to request such information without first getting written permission," said Mansell.

Information provided in this column is presented by the Realtor members of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors at www.silvar.org. Send questions on any topic to gmeissner@silvar.org.