I wasn't even aware that the govt was considering any changes, but a recent media article brought this to light recently..... Tax deductible mortgages? No way! The Prime Minister, Mr Howard, won’t have a bar of the idea. His reason – home ownership already has tax advantages. Mr Howard said that the Government had looked at tax deductions for mortgages but then considered the tax advantages that home ownership already provides. These is no capital gains tax on the family home and there is support for negative gearing. On top of this, he said interest rates were low. He told listeners of Southern Cross Broadcasting: “In these circumstances we don’t think having tax deductibility on mortgage payments should be introduced because we think that would further skew investment into property and away from other areas that are in need of investment”. However the concept of income splitting appeals. Mr Howard said: “We decided when we came into office that we would do it through the family tax benefit system, which effectively means that a single income family on an income up to $65,000 - $70,000 where the youngest child is under five has the same benefits as if that single income was split between the husband and the wife”. Mr Howard said other forms of tax relief were being looked at for the May Budget. The Government anticipated a Budget surplus and would provide tax relief with whatever was left over. Source: IProperty -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Will be interesting to see what the budget spits out that will be so beneficial to us as investors. I have this feeling we're going to be disappointed yet again
