The 1098 Mortgage Interest form is incorrect

[vyarovoy1]

My HELOC lender entered incorrect amount (by a thousands) into the 2024 1098 form - I had zero balance (as confirmed by their own statements) by Nov 14, 2024, yet they are showing thousands in Box 2 ("outstanding mortgage principal"), and their amount is the whole HELOC balance I had when I opened it. Can I enter the correct amount in TurboTax, or am I stuck with what they gave me in their 1098?

[MindyB]

You can enter the correct amount in TurboTax- keep the backup with your records, but your balance wouldn't be zero because it was paid off in November.  Note, this matters if you will be subject to the limitation of outstanding mortgages valued at $750,000 or more. If you are under the limit, entering the full balance won't impact your return, and the highest balance during the year is a common method of compliance.

You could use the statements provided by your lender to figure the average mortgage balance in 2024.  See: Pub 936 Average Mortgage Balance

[vyarovoy1]

Thanks, please clarify why my balance in box 2 would not be zero in Nov 2024? My statements (other than 1098) shows I owed them nothing as of Nov 15, 2024

[MindyB]

Typically, the balance shown in Box 2 is the balance at the beginning of the year (so the highest balance in the year).  You can reach out to your lender if you're unable to determine where the balance is sourced from, but using your own computation allowable by the IRS in Pub 936  is perfectly acceptable.