Mortgage Interest Deduction: What You Need to Know to Deposit in 2022 | News

Buying a home has never been more expensive, but if you can find one that you can afford, there’s good news after you move in: You may be able to take advantage of the mortgage interest deduction. to reduce your tax bill.

However, the IRS rules regarding mortgage interest deduction can be very complicated. As you contemplate tax season, here’s a guide to help you understand what interest is eligible for the deduction and how you can benefit from it if you qualify.

What is the mortgage interest deduction?

If you have a home loan, mortgage interest deduction can allow you to reduce your taxable income by the amount of interest paid on the loan during the year, as well as other expenses such as mortgage insurance premiums. and points.

The deduction only applies to the interest on your mortgage, not the principal, and to claim it you must itemize your deductions. You can use Bankrate’s Mortgage Interest Deduction Calculator to get an estimate of the kind of savings you can expect when filing your taxes.

Mortgage interest deduction has been around for over 100 years, but has evolved over time. Different administrations have changed the rules for this benefit, and former President Donald Trump’s tax reform has had an impact on who can benefit from it.

Mortgage interest deduction limit

If your home was purchased before December 16, 2017, you can deduct mortgage interest paid on your first million dollars in mortgage debt ($ 500,000 if you’re married and filing separately).

For mortgages taken out since that date, you can only deduct interest on the first $ 750,000 ($ 375,000 if you’re married and filing separately). Note that if you were under contract before December 15, 2017 and the mortgage loan was closed before April 1, 2018, your mortgage is considered prior to December 16, 2017.

Mortgage interest deduction for your 2021 tax return

While almost all homeowners are entitled to the mortgage interest tax deduction, you can only claim it if you itemize your deductions on your federal income tax return by completing a Schedule A with Form 1040 or equivalent.

For this reason, you will need to decide whether it is better to deduct mortgage interest by itemizing or taking the standard deduction. The standard deduction for the 2021 tax year is $ 12,550 for single tax filers and $ 25,100 for married taxpayers filing jointly. For the 2022 tax year, these amounts are $ 12,950 for single tax filers and $ 25,900 for married spouses.

Let’s say you are a single homeowner who spent $ 18,000 on mortgage interest in 2021. It would make sense in this scenario to itemize your deductions because you are reducing your taxable income by a larger amount than if you had to take the standard deduction. .

If you’re not sure what the best course of action is, consult a tax professional to help you understand the best decision for your financial situation.

What constitutes mortgage interest?

The general IRS definition of “mortgage interest” is the interest that accrues on any loan secured by your primary residence or second home. Other costs and charges may also be included in the mortgage interest deduction. Here is an overview:

– Any interest in your home: The property must include facilities for sleeping, cooking and eating and can be a home, condo, co-op, mobile home, boat, or recreational vehicle.

—Interest on a second home that you don’t rent – If you rent the property during a certain time of the year, you will need to follow certain guidelines (in particular, use it for your own use that is more than 14 days or more than 10% of the time it is rented, whichever is longer) to deduct interest. Be sure to inquire about other tax deductions for rental property.

——Most Mortgage Insurance Premiums: For tax year 2020, if your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) is greater than $ 109,000 as a married couple or $ 54,500 if you are filing individually, you do not cannot deduct mortgage insurance costs.

– Late payment fees: If you are late on a payment, you can probably deduct the additional fees charged to you.

—Payment Penalties: If you are charged a penalty fee for prepaying your mortgage, you can deduct this amount.

—Points: If you have paid points to reduce your mortgage interest rate, you can deduct a portion that applies to the individual reporting year.

—Home equity loans and home equity lines of credit used to improve your home: If you have purchased a home equity line of credit (HELOC) or home equity loan to pay for a home improvement project, you can deduct the home equity loans. interest on the amount you used to upgrade your property.

What is not deductible?

—Interest on a mortgage for a third or fourth house

—Any interest on a reverse mortgage

-Home insurance

– Expertise fees

-Notary fees

—Closing costs or down payment

—Additional payments made to the principal

—Home equity loan funds / HELOC funds used for purposes unrelated to your property (for example, if you borrowed against your home to pay for a wedding, these funds are not deductible)

Special considerations for deducting mortgage interest

When you review the IRS’s guide to mortgage interest deduction, you will notice a lot of language that details exceptions in certain situations. Below is a partial list of these special considerations. If you have a unique circumstance, consult the most recent IRS publication 936 or seek advice from a tax professional.

—Home office complications: If you are using part of your property for a home office, you will need to calculate the specific square footage used for living versus work. The “inhabitant” space is the only part that qualifies for a mortgage interest deduction.

—House Under Construction: If you are building a house, you have a qualifying 24-month period under the mortgage interest deduction guidelines.

—House sales: If you sold your home last year, you can still deduct the interest accrued on the loan up to the date of sale, but not included.

—Pay points when refinancing: If you refinanced your mortgage in 2021 and paid points to reduce the rate, you probably won’t be able to fully deduct the cost of those points. Instead, you may be able to deduct some of those points over the life of the new loan.

How to claim mortgage interest deduction

Step 1: Watch for communications from your lender or manager in early 2022. You don’t have to track the amount of interest you pay; your lender or agent will do this and send you Form 1098. This should arrive in late January or early February, and should also include mortgage insurance premiums and prepaid interest.

Step 2: Do the math. You will need to determine whether the breakdown of your deductions (your mortgage interest charges and any other eligible deductions) will give you more than the standard deduction.

Step 3: Submit your Form 1098 to your tax professional or complete Schedule A of Form 1040 yourself. All reported mortgage interest will be entered on line 8a, any undeclared interest will appear on line 8b and insurance premiums. mortgage will appear on line 8d.

Benefits of deducting mortgage interest

The main advantage of deducting mortgage interest is that it can reduce the total taxes you pay. Let’s say you paid $ 10,000 in mortgage interest and you are in the 32% tax bracket. You reduce your tax bill by $ 3,200 after subtracting the $ 10,000 deduction from your income.

“Those in the higher tax brackets will benefit the most because they will see larger deductions,” notes Kelly Crane, president and chief investment officer of St. Helena-based Napa Valley Wealth Management, in California.

In fact, lower income taxpayers get fewer benefits overall, says Andrew Latham, certified personal finance advisor and editor at SuperMoney in Santa Ana, California.

“Taxpayers who earn less than $ 100,000 actually only receive 11% of the benefits of this deduction,” Latham said, citing a 2019 Tax Foundation report. “In contrast, taxpayers who earn $ 200,000 or more per year get a larger benefit – 60% of the total savings from deducting mortgage interest.”

Need more information on filing your taxes in 2022? Read the Bankrate guide for the next tax season. If you’re lucky enough to be eligible for a refund, also consider some of the great ways to invest that amount of money to improve your financial well-being.

(Visit Bankrate online at bankrate.com.)

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