To clarify? Are you trying to claim the foreign income exclusion? If so, the following Turbo Tax link posted by Turbo Tax expert GiseleD lists these expenses that can reported as housing expenses.
Housing expenses include:
•Rent,
•The fair rental value of housing provided in kind by the employer,
•Repairs,
•Utilities (other than telephone charges),
•Real and personal property insurance,
•Nondeductible occupancy taxes,
•Nonrefundable fees for securing a leasehold,
•Rental of furniture and accessories, and
•Residential parking.
Housing expenses do not include:
•Expenses that are lavish or extravagant under the circumstances,
•Deductible interest and taxes (including deductible interest and taxes of a tenant-stockholder in a cooperative housing corporation),
•The cost of buying property, including principal payments on a mortgage,
•The cost of domestic labor (maids, gardeners, etc.),
•Pay television subscriptions,
Improvements and other expenses that increase the value or appreciably prolong the life of property,
•Purchased furniture or accessories, or
•Depreciation or amortization of property or imp
As you mentioned, your mortgage interest and real estate tax are not allowable expenses but these can be reported as itemized deductions in your return.
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