We are married filing separately. I have a foreign residence and want to deduct housing, though the foreign housing deduction option isn't provided for some reason and I have to deal with that as well. Once I've tried both, I can decide but often that turns out better for me. And I do not have that option. Believe me. I've tried it a thousand times. It tells me what the program has chosen for me, but does not allow me to change it. The instructions you gave do not exist on my program.
