married filing separately help !

[okden]

wife and i have to claim married filing separately , should we split the mortgage interest 50/50 or let one of us take it ? we are co buyers and the issue i am running into is that it wants me to itemize (which makes her itemize as well) but she is nowhere close to the standard deduction.  looking for any advice 

thanks

[KatrinaB48]

Yes, you should split the mortgage interest 50/50 to maximize your wife's deductions. When filing as married filing separately, if one spouse itemizes the other spouse is required to also.