Officials in the California State Legislature are currently discussing the elimination of the mortgage interest deduction. It's hard to believe in today's mortgage, credit, and housing crisis, but it's true. And what happens in California is likely to serve as a model for not just other states, but the federal government as well.

How would it affect you? If the mortgage interest deduction were taken away then you would no longer be able to deduct interest you pay on your home on your income tax return. Currently, that deduction helps to dramatically lower how much you pay in taxes. Not only that, but that deduction often puts homeowners over a threshold which allows them to itemize additional deductions, saving more money on taxes. If the mortgage interest deduction is removed, a homeowner who owes $300,000 on a home who is paying 7% interest for 30 years with a household income of $100,000 will pay more than $6,000 in additional taxes each year!

If legislators and bureaucrats don't hear from you, they will assume you don't mind if they eliminate the mortgage interest deduction. Read and sign the petitions to the U. S. Congress (below) and the California State Legislature.
 

PETITION TO THE U. S. CONGRESS

The ability to deduct interest paid on home mortgages from state and federal income taxes preserves the "American Dream" by supporting incentives for home ownership. The recent attempts by members of the California State Legislature to move toward eliminating this deduction are deeply disturbing, and I vehemently oppose such efforts.

Proposed changes to the current home mortgage interest deduction would negatively impact the housing market along with the construction industry that has been driving the U.S. economy for some time, and with the tax incentive gone, you can count on declining home values and increases in foreclosures and bankruptcies.

It is unfair to change the rules after people, in good faith, made purchases under financial considerations guided by current and existing rules.

I, the undersigned, do hereby urge that you oppose any changes to the current home mortgage interest deduction rule and publicly speak out against any efforts that seek to reduce individual assets or penalize hard working Americans who are driving our economy through home ownership.