- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
1st year Mortgage interest and Tax Returns
Posted on 4/2/13 at 7:13 am
Posted on 4/2/13 at 7:13 am
Just filed my taxes on TurboTax. After reading this forum, it seemed like the most economical way to do them since my situation isn't very complicated (25 year old, married with a house). I do however have one question.
I bought a house in 2012, and paid approx. $5,000.00 in mortgage interest. After entering that in TurboTax, it made $0 difference in my return. I was under the impression that I should get a good chunk of that back, but I guess the program doesn't lie? FYI I ran my taxes through it twice and came up with the same result each time.
I talked to a guy from work who also bought a house last year, and he got back a lot of the interest he paid. I don't know how his income compares to mine.
I bought a house in 2012, and paid approx. $5,000.00 in mortgage interest. After entering that in TurboTax, it made $0 difference in my return. I was under the impression that I should get a good chunk of that back, but I guess the program doesn't lie? FYI I ran my taxes through it twice and came up with the same result each time.
I talked to a guy from work who also bought a house last year, and he got back a lot of the interest he paid. I don't know how his income compares to mine.
3
Posted on 4/2/13 at 7:22 am to Jblac15
You probably didn't have enough deductions to itemize. When you take the standard deduction you don't get to take deductions such as the mortgage interest deduction.
Posted on 4/2/13 at 7:31 am to Jblac15
It's exactly what the previous poster said.
A little more detail: since you are married and probably filing a joint return, you receive a standard deduction of $11,900 for 2012. That means you get to subtract $11,900 from your adjusted gross income regardless of whether you have any deductions which you can itemize.
If you only had $5,000 in mortgage interest, which you can deduct, you would need more than $6,900 of other deductions (unreimbursed medical expenses, charitable contributions, etc.) before itemizing your deductions would benefit you rather than taking the standard deduction.
I use TurboTax also and it asks you through the interview process all the questions pertaining to deductible expenses for which you can itemize. The software then compares if your itemized deductions would exceed the standard deduction ($11,900) and if they do not, then it automatically uses the standard deduction.
You saw no change in your taxes with the $5,000 mortgage interest entry because you didn't have enough other deductions to bring your total itemized deductions to over $11,900.
A little more detail: since you are married and probably filing a joint return, you receive a standard deduction of $11,900 for 2012. That means you get to subtract $11,900 from your adjusted gross income regardless of whether you have any deductions which you can itemize.
If you only had $5,000 in mortgage interest, which you can deduct, you would need more than $6,900 of other deductions (unreimbursed medical expenses, charitable contributions, etc.) before itemizing your deductions would benefit you rather than taking the standard deduction.
I use TurboTax also and it asks you through the interview process all the questions pertaining to deductible expenses for which you can itemize. The software then compares if your itemized deductions would exceed the standard deduction ($11,900) and if they do not, then it automatically uses the standard deduction.
You saw no change in your taxes with the $5,000 mortgage interest entry because you didn't have enough other deductions to bring your total itemized deductions to over $11,900.
Posted on 4/2/13 at 11:57 am to Jblac15
In addition to the $5,000 of mortgage interest expense you should have real estate taxes associated with your home ownership that are deductible, and you may be able to deduct any qualified mortgage insurance premiums paid. You can also claim a deduction for any state income tax withheld from your, or your spouse's, wages, and/or any state income taxes you paid.
The other common deduction is for contributions to charities. Contributions can be in cash, or they can be non-cash. When taxpayers move into a new home it is common for them to donate all sorts of goods to charities to get rid of stuff they feel they will not need, or plan to replace.
Taxpayers filing married filing joint need to have more than $11,900 of itemized deductions in order to benefit from itemizing. You might want to give your return a third pass through TurboTax and pay more attention to these items. Good luck.
The other common deduction is for contributions to charities. Contributions can be in cash, or they can be non-cash. When taxpayers move into a new home it is common for them to donate all sorts of goods to charities to get rid of stuff they feel they will not need, or plan to replace.
Taxpayers filing married filing joint need to have more than $11,900 of itemized deductions in order to benefit from itemizing. You might want to give your return a third pass through TurboTax and pay more attention to these items. Good luck.
Page 1 of 1
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News