Thanks for our

joining me on Money Girls Quick and Dirty Tips for our richer life.

I'm your host, Laura Adams. A common question I receive is about taking the home mortgage interest deduction, like this email from Joe in California.

My fiance bought a home last year, but I'm not on the title since my credit was not up to par.

Her father entered into the mortgage with her and to my knowledge he does not write off anything for the home.

My fiance does not work and I pay the mortgage.

My question is if there's any way I can benefit from this on my taxes or is it a complete

loss for me?

Joe, thanks for your question.

In this show, I'll explain the home mortgage interest deduction

and clarify who's eligible to claim it.

When you borrow money to buy, build, or to substantially improve your primary

residence or a second home, you get a tax break. The interest paid on mortgage balances

up to $1 million is a tax deductible expense and

interest paid on up to one hundred thousand dollars of home equity loans or lines of

credit is generally tax deductible too.

There are four conditions that must be met in order to

qualify to take the home mortgage interest deduction. Number one you must file

your taxes on form 1040 and itemize your deductions on Schedule A.

That means you list each of your tax deductible expenses,

like charitable contributions, medical costs, and state and local taxes

instead of taking the default standard deduction.

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