Fiscal Tax Blog

Last year Congress passed a new tax law to provide tax relief for many homeowners who take the standard tax deduction rather than itemizing their deductions on Schedule A. Congress authorized a maximum $500 additional standard deduction ($1,000 for joint filers) in the Housing Assistance Tax Act of 2008 but made it available only for the 2008 tax year. This new law extends the additional standard deduction for real property taxes for non-itemizers through 2009.

Tax Examples: For 2008, the $10,900 standard deduction for joint filers will increase to a maximum of $11,900 with the additional standard deduction for property tax paying non-itemizers. Under the new law, the standard deduction for single filers could increase to a maximum of $5,950 and the head of household amount from $8,000 to $8,500.

Tax Reminder: This deduction is in addition to the standard deduction, it is not an above-the-line deduction that lowers a taxpayer's adjusted gross income (AGI).

Can't take advantage of this tax break?

Check out our list of 40 Tax Breaks that you could use to get your largest tax refund ever in 2009.

Have a question about this tax break?

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