Tax benefits of US homeownership no longer a draw for buyers

Boston

THE tax benefits of homeownership, which generations of US residents have counted on, have been elusive for typical buyers since mortgage rates started tumbling in 2008, according to an analysis by John Burns Real Estate Consulting LLC.

For a married couple who put 20 per cent down on a median- priced home and borrowed the rest, the standard deduction for 2015 is almost US$2,500 more than what they'd get by itemising their mortgage interest and property taxes, according to Mr Burns. By comparison, those expenses easily exceeded the standard deduction in every year from 1972 to 2008, Mr Burns said in a report released on Thursday.