Any points that you pay in the refinancing of your residence are tax deductible over the length of the loan in question. The deduction is allowable only if the residence is your primary home and the new mortgage replaces a previous one and/or is used to improve the residence. To the extent that money is taken out to pay off credit cards and non-residence costs, the points may not be used as a tax deduction.
Big Deductions By Refinancing Twice
If you refinanced your primary residence twice during 2004, you may be in for a very nice surprise. A significant tax deduction can be created when you refinance twice in one year. If you refinance a mortgage, you accelerate the deductible amount of points from the first mortgage and may claim the points from the first mortgage all at once.
As an example, assume that I refinanced my home in January 2004 and paid $3,000 in points. Interest rates continued to drop through 2004 and I then decided to refinance again in August. Because I paid off the original loan with the refinance, I am able to accelerate the value of the points of the January loan.
So, what tax deductions have I created for my 2004 filing period?...