Buying a Home in Time to Get Credit .

House hunting usually slows down this time of year, as people put their searches on hold during the holidays.

This winter could be different, however, thanks to the extension -- and expansion -- of the first-time home-buyer tax credit.

"We're going to see far more interest in the fourth quarter than we generally do because of the tax credit," says Heather Fernandez, vice president of Trulia.com, a real-estate search engine. Traffic surged on the site on Nov. 5, the day Congress approved the credit extension, she says.

The new law extends the tax credit for first-time home buyers and opens it up to some existing homeowners as well: The credit is now up to $8,000 for first-time buyers and up to $6,500 for repeat buyers.

All buyers must have a binding contract on a house in place on or before April 30. The purchase must be for a principal residence and must close on or before June 30.

To be considered a first-time home buyer, an individual must not have owned a home in the past three years. And to be eligible, existing homeowners need to have lived in the same principal residence for five consecutive years during the eight-year period that ends when the new home is purchased

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