Up to 180,000 homebuyers nationwide, including almost 4,000 in the Bay State, will lose their tax credit if Congress fails to pass an extension to the homebuyer tax credit by tomorrow, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The current deadline requires buyers to close by June 30 to get an $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers. Existing homeowners buying a new primary residence are eligible for a $6,500 credit. Earlier this month, the Senate included an amendment to a jobless benefits extension bill that would have given homebuyers another three months to settle on their contracts, but the jobs bill was voted down last week.

Included in that number are thousands of homebuyers in every state, from 390 in Wyoming to 17,700 in California, according to estimates by NAR.

"We are strongly urging the Senate and the House to act quickly to pass this legislation and ease the minds and pocketbooks of these home buyers," said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder, owner of Vicki L. Cox & Assoc. in Tucson, Ariz.

"These are not buyers who just entered into the market. These are buyers who previously met all the qualifications for the tax credit, but find themselves at the mercy of a workflow jam with lenders or other delays such as lapses in the National Flood Insurance Program, Rural Housing Service, and new home construction, and might not be able to complete the purchase of their homes by the current deadline," said Golder. "It would be a tragedy for them not to be able to complete the purchase in time to claim the credit."

Thousands of homebuyers in area states would also be eligible for the tax credit if it were extended. NAR estimates 1,770 in Connecticut, 690 in New Hampshire and 500 in Rhode Island would miss out.