Question: I always enjoy listening to your comments and hope that you have a moment to settle a discussion a friend and I are having. Is the “benefit” of the itemized tax deduction on one’s income tax worth retaining a mortgage if one is able to satisfy that debt? In this case, we are discussion someone who has about fifty thousand dollars on the mortgage and is of retirement age, no children and few other itemized deductions. There is no other debt. Thank you for your thoughts on this matter. Judith, Reading, OH
Answer: Sure, I’d love to weigh in on your discussion. The short answer is that any financial benefit you get from the mortgage deduction is swamped by the cost of paying interest on the loan. My guess is that the value of your mortgage interest deduction is not only minimal, but it’s below what you can get by simply taking the standard deduction. (It’s worth finding out.)
The main reason not to pay off the mortgage has to do with your personal financial safety net. You don’t want to put all your savings into one asset, like a home. But if you have a well-diversified portfolio and adequate savings why not get rid of the mortgage. And that sounds like you or your friend.
Stories You Might Like
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
