有点眉目了--

 

好像是local tax最高一万，加mortgage interest（没限制）。对我家老大第一年当homeowner这个数字不小！

 

Do you pay state and local taxes?

Just about everyone pays some form of state and local taxes. These include:

• Real estate taxes. If you pay your real estate taxes through an escrow account, look at the real estate taxes shown on Form 1098 or the year-end tax summary your lender provided. If your real estate taxes aren't paid through an escrow account, review your property tax bills or canceled checks and add up what you paid.
• State and local income taxes. Add up the state and local income taxes shown on your W-2 and any estimated tax payments you made to your state or local government for this year’s state tax return. Don't forget to add any money you sent with your prior-year state or local tax return.
• Sales tax. If your state and local sales tax is greater than your state and local income taxes, you’ll likely want to deduct sales tax instead. You're allowed to either deduct actual sales tax paid on all of your purchases throughout the year (which requires a lot of record-keeping) or an estimate of what you paid based on your income level and your local sales tax rate. You can estimate your sales tax deduction using the IRS's , or let TurboTax take care of the calculation for you. You can add to this estimate any sales tax you paid on big-ticket items, such as a new vehicle, boat, RV, or major home renovation.
• Personal property taxes. A portion of your annual car registration may be deductible. To qualify, the tax has to be based on the vehicle's value. You can usually find this on your registration or renewal notice.

Add up all of these taxes, but remember the IRS limits your state and local tax deduction to $10,000.

Tip: Add your total state and local taxes (capped at $10,000) to the mortgage interest number you calculated above. If the total is larger than your standard deduction, you'll likely benefit from itemizing.