Refund for Mortgage

[Spaceman404]

What kind of a refund can I expect when I purchase a home using a mortgage?

[DoninGA]

There is not a refund for mortgage payments you made on a tax return.  You can claim the mortgage interest payments as an itemized deduction.  However, the total of all your itemized deductions on Schedule A must be greater than the standard deduction for your filing status to have any tax benefit.

Standard deductions for 2023

Single - $13,850 add $1,850 if age 65 or older
Married Filing Separately - $13,850 add $1,500 if age 65 or older
Married Filing Jointly - $27,700 add $1,500 for each spouse age 65 or older
Head of Household - $20,800 add $1,850 if age 65 or older

[BracyR1 · Accepted solution]

Good question, and maybe a great opportunity!  The first question you have to answer is how much are your total deductions---mortgage expense, and all that goes with buying a house would be part of "itemized" deductions, along with things like medical expenses, co-payments, deductibles, premiums, also education expenses, and more.  So, to find out, go to "Deductions and Credits" in your TurboTax account, the list of possible deductions will pop-up and allow you to punch in some numbers.  And, then if your itemized deductions are more that the standard deduction you're good---the mortage and all of that will be deductible.  Keep in mind, the standard deduction for Married, filing jointly for 2022, was $25,900, as an example.  Thus, your itemized deductions must be higher than that to be of any benefit.  So, go through the process, try to get the total on the "Deductions and Credits" section and Turbo Tax will tell you which, standard or itemize, will be best for you.  In the mean time, start now keeping detailed records of you expense detailed in TurboTax--you may be surprised when you add everything up next tax season, 2023.