AMT, not ATM

March 7, 2012 12:57 PM

I am single, rent, and payed AMT for 2011. If I owned my own home and had a mortgage, would I have been able to deduct the interest, or is the fact that I payed AMT a sign that no further deductions were available to me? I have few deductions but itemize because my state tax alone is more than the standard deduction. You are not now, and will never be, my accountant.
posted by benbenson to Work & Money (5 answers total)

IANA, but the fact that you're triggering AMT, in my experience, means that your mortgage-interest deduction would have been discounted or eliminated.
posted by Rat Spatula at 1:02 PM on March 7, 2012

Best answer: Yes, it's deductible (up to a certain amount, assuming you're actually using the loan to pay for your house) with the AMT. NY Times reference here, turbotax reference here: "Line 4: Home Equity Interest: Home mortgage interest claimed as an itemized deduction is only deductible for the AMT if the loan was used to buy, build or improve your home."
posted by brainmouse at 1:10 PM on March 7, 2012

yes you would still be able to deduct your mortgage but you can't deduct property taxes

(its deducting your state taxes that make you hit the AMT - I get hit as well and have similar circumstances to you, but take the standard deduction and it just ends up being = to the tax advantage of my qualified dividends)
posted by JPD at 1:12 PM on March 7, 2012

I think that it is odd that you're paying AMT if you have few deductions. I assume that you're in a very high tax state, but am still surprised.

This New York Times link suggests that you can still deduct the mortgage interest, but not the property taxes. I am sure that you can find the applicable IRS booklet or call the IRS - they are very helpful about that sort of thing in general.
posted by iknowizbirfmark at 1:13 PM on March 7, 2012

Response by poster: Thanks, everyone.
posted by benbenson at 1:16 PM on March 7, 2012