The December 2017 tax reform bill eliminated the tax incentive for many millennial, middle class and minority Americans to own a home, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).
To help those homeowners as well as future buyer, NAR is urging Congress to consider ways it can support the American dream of homeownership through a petition.
By raising the standard deduction that homeowners can claim for mortgage interest deductions and capping the amount of state and local tax (SALT) deductions, the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act took away important incentives for homeowners, says NAR.
As a result, 18.6 million fewer Americans claimed mortgage interest deductions on their 2018 tax returns than the previous year. Only one in 10 Americans itemized their tax returns in 2018, compared to one in three in 2017. Millions of Americans who still itemized in 2018 found their taxes went up significantly because of the new limit, NAR said.
