Leave deduction on mortgages alone
Re Dec. 3 editorial on lowering the mortgage interest deduction limit:
The article pointed out that it does not currently apply to loan principals over $1million. The editorial then advocates that this amount be reduced to $500,000. It seems the writer wants to enlist low-income readers to engage this reasoning. But nowhere does the writer advocate pegging the amount to rise with the cost of inflation.
The first home I ever purchased carried a mortgage for about $22,000 in the 1960s and it would sell for over 10 times that today, even considering the recent real estate bust. How many years would it take for mortgages considered commonplace today to be at an amount higher than $500,000?
Everyone who will ever consider having a mortgage should be against this nonsense. It would destroy the home building industry, and very much hurt all real estate sales in the future.
Harry Goggins, Longs
This story was originally published December 10, 2015 at 4:27 PM with the headline "Leave deduction on mortgages alone."