Eliminate the Mortgage Interest Deduction
August 1, 2011
The mortgage interest deduction does not increase homeownership rates and amounts to little more than a subsidy for wealthy homeowners, according to a new Reason Foundation study that recommends eliminating the deduction and streamlining the tax code. The Reason Foundation report suggests a revenue-neutral solution: eliminate the mortgage interest deduction and lower federal income tax rates for all Americans by 8 percent.
- The mortgage interest deduction was used on about a quarter of all tax returns filed in 2009.
- But the Reason Foundation report shows the home mortgage deduction was used on 73 percent of tax returns filed by those with incomes over $200,000 that year.
- The average tax savings for those homeowners: $2,221.
- In contrast, just 5.5 percent of tax returns filed by those making $20,000 to $30,000 used the mortgage interest deduction in 2009, with no significant tax savings.
- Thirteen percent of tax filers making between $30,000 and $40,000 used the mortgage deduction.
- Their tax savings was a paltry $96.
- And 23 percent of tax returns with incomes between $40,000 and $50,000 used the mortgage interest deduction, with an average tax savings of just $114.
The study finds that the mortgage interest deduction has not increased homeownership rates and that eliminating it would not reduce homeownership figures or hurt housing prices.
Source: "Unmasking the Mortgage Interest Deduction," Reason Foundation, July 28, 2011.
For text:
http://reason.org/blog/show/unmasking-mortgage-interest-deducti
For study:
http://reason.org/files/mortgage_interest_deduction.pdf
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