I have mortgage and HELOC thru 2 different banks. Using the 1098 form from the HELOC bank, Box 2 Outstanding mortgage principal is blank. What do I enter in the tax form?

[schultzee-pamela]

What value do I enter into Box 2 Outstanding mortgage principal? Do I enter zero since the form from the HELOC bank is empty or do I enter the mortgage principal that my mortgage company shows on their 1098?

[RobertB4444]

You will enter the value that is on the mortgage interest statement.  Otherwise none of the interest is deductible.

The interest on the HELOC is only deductible on the percentage of the loan that was used to substantially improve the value of your home.  So if you used the HELOC partially to pay off debt then you will need to separate out that percentage of the interest and only deduct the home improvement percentage.

Combine the mortgage interest and the HELOC interest that was used for home improvement into one number as though they had been received on one form 1098.  Then enter the amount from the mortgage interest statement box 2 in the box 2 area.

@schultzee-pamela