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The $8,000 first time homebuyer credit ends on December 1st, which means that you must close on your new home on or before November 30th.
In most cases, this means that you need to be under contract by AT LEAST October 30th, so you can have a full 30 day closing period.
There are several real estate lobby groups pushing for an extension and/or an expansion of the credit, but nothing has been solidified yet.