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It doesn't matter if you're excited by the prospect of finally owning a piece of property complete with a picket fence and a tire swing, or if you're a jaded, miserable seller hoping to unload your house on the first passerby with decent credit and a pulse. Either way, the events in Washington will affect you.

President Barack Obama just signed what's officially known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, a $789 billion dollar stimulus package. Obviously, the bill has its critics. For instance, Anthony Migyanka, an economist in Irving, Texas, puts it this way: "Regarding the [housing] incentives, I like them, but strictly from having an economic impact on the macro-economy in any way, no, I don't think they'll do a thing. They're like a jet ski hitting the side of a battleship."

But even a stimulus-jaded economist just admitted he likes the housing-related incentives in the package, so if you're wondering if there is anything in this for you, the answer is a firm -- maybe.

Here's how the act is shaping up to look like for homebuyers and owners alike.

If you want to buy a home

If you're a new homebuyer purchasing between Jan. 1 through Dec. 31 of this year, you'll get a tax credit for 10 percent of the home's value, up to $8,000 of the home purchase amount. The existing new homebuyer tax credit of $7,500 through June 30, 2009, is an interest-free loan that needs to be paid back in the coming years. This $8,000 doesn't have to be paid back.

Even better, as tax law expert Michael Brewster notes, "A credit will typically reduce the taxable income dollar for dollar." So if you make $60,000 in a year, and get an $8,000 credit on your home, your taxable income will be $52,000, which, of course, means your taxes will be lower, points out Brewster.

If you want to refinance

Alan Sims, a forensic real estate appraiser and legal expert witness, is not optimistic that this bill will help much. "Refinancing into a new mortgage is the cornerstone of turning around the declining mortgage market," says Sims, but he makes the observation that a lot of homeowners pulled cash out of their houses in the last several years, leaving them with little to no equity, and to refinance, you generally need 20 percent equity in your house.

That said, if you have equity in your house and good credit, it may work out fine for you. Expectations are that the stimulus bill will force mortgage rates down closer to 4 percent, which would make it very attractive for homeowners to refinance. Currently, they're at 5.16 percent. It's also expected that the size limits on government-controlled mortgage loans may increase, which would allow more homeowners to refinance at lower rates. Still, Sims has reasons to be pessimistic. There's not a lot here.

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