Free Republic

Housing-industry trade organizations immediately condemned House Republicans' tax bill when it passed in mid-November.Senate Republicans' version passed over the weekend. Unlike the House's bill, it doesn't halve the mortgage interest deduction, but it could still remove tax benefits for homeowners.The Senate's bill raises the standard deduction, meaning households would be less likely to exceed that threshold and choose to itemize their mortgage interest.Both versions could end up weakening home prices. The GOP tax bill should keep homeowners on alert.Early on Saturday, Senate Republicans passed their version of the bill, called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, pushing it closer...

My friends it's government interference in the market. Why should some millionaire owner get a tax break when he can just buy something cheaper? If the idea is to make housing affordable ONE house is plenty of help. No need for help on a second home. Government grants for college make tuition rates go up. Won't the deduction do the same for housing? The Milton Friedmans out there will say it's bad for housing. I agree. WE start the discussion. The Yahoo article posted earlier was written by yahoos.

If you were to randomly ask a sample of 100 Americans from around the country why the mortgage interest deduction was implemented in the tax code, I'd wager that the bulk of the answers would range from "I don't know" to "they were designed to give a tax break to the rich." Both answers suggest ignorance of facts, but the former is at least honest. The latter is just regurgitation of a leftist talking point by those feigning knowledge on the subject. The truth is a bit different than popular perception on this matter. Few, if any, among that small...

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), built by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and run by “Robo Cop” Richard Cordray (the former Attorney General of Ohio), has issued its new list of mortgage feature bans for the “qualified mortgage.” Kerri Ann Panchuk from Housing Wire has a nice summary in her article. 201301_cfpb_ability-to-repay-factsheet Here are the features of Qualified Mortgages and what is banned: • No excess upfront points and fees • No toxic loan features o No interest-only loans, o No loans where the principal amount increases, such as a negative-amortization loan; and o No loans where the term is...

RICHMOND, Va. – House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Thursday said Congress is unlikely to take away the popular mortgage interest tax break. Speaking to a crowd of real estate professionals in his hometown, Cantor said the tax would be considered as part of the larger tax reform discussion. But he suggested a change is probably not in the cards. “Honestly, there’s not a lot of support for getting rid of the mortgage deduction on Capitol Hill,” Cantor said to loud applause from the audience. Cantor was speaking to nearly 200 members of the Richmond Association of REALTORs. It...

In the arena of tax policy and tax reform the income tax deductions for Mortgage interest seems to be cast in stone and never to be touched. This is the one tax deduction every homeowner knows to include in his tax return and a benefit that the President has asked his tax reform panel to keep. Unfortunately, one Huge and growing tax issue hanging over the mortgage deduction is the Alternative Minimum Tax ( AMT). A tax hitting more and more Middle Class Americans where their Tax Accountant has to figure out their taxes 2 ways. Because AMT has not...

News Home - Help Rates on 30-Year Mortgages Decline Thu, Aug 19, 2004 By MARTIN CRUTSINGER, AP Economics WriterWASHINGTON - Mortgage rates declined again this week with 30-year mortgages remaining below the 6 percent level for a third consecutive week, Freddie Mac reported Thursday. The mortgage giant said that its latest nationwide survey showed that rates on 30-year, fixed-rates mortgages fell to 5.81 percent this week. That's down from the average rate of 5.85 percent last week and is the lowest level for 30-year mortgages in more than four months, since they averaged 5.79 percent the week of April...