How Trump's new tax law affects homeowners in major cities at every income level from $83,000 to $336,000 a year

Tanza LoudenbackMar 13, 2018, 16:03 IST

In this Monday, Sept. 14, 2015 photo, James Young stands outside his home in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood of Chicago.M. Spencer Green/AP

President Donald Trump signed the Republican tax bill into law in December 2017.
The new tax law changes the mortgage interest and property tax deduction, potentially making homeownership less attractive in the long run.
Homeowners in expensive coastal cities will likely see the biggest loss of tax deductions, according to one housing economist's projections.

President Donald Trump signed t he Republican tax bill into law at the end of December.

The new tax law makes sweeping changes to the tax code for businesses and, on average, American taxpayers. It changes a few longstanding tax benefits for homeowners, too.

Under the new law, the deduction for state and local property taxes is capped at $10,000. Plus, homeowners who deduct mortgage interest are limited to the amount they pay on $750,000 worth of debt, down from $1 million. On the flip side, the standard deduction has doubled, likely leading fewer homeowners to itemize their taxes.

These changes may weaken incentives for homeownership, especially in expensive coastal markets in California and the Northeast where home prices are high and residents pay state taxes on income as well as property. Homeowners in these markets will see the biggest change in their housing-related tax deductions.

"The impact of the changes is felt disproportionately in left-leaning parts of the country," writes Chris Salviati, a housing economist at Apartment List, in a new report. "There are 15 states in which the median homeowner will receive at least $100 less in housing tax deductions under the new plan - President Trump carried none of these states in the 2016 election."

Apartment List analyzed the affect of Trump's new tax law on homeowners with home values below, at, and above the median in the largest metros in the US. They estimated the overall tax bill for a married couple filing jointly with a dependent child under the previous tax code and the new tax code.

In much of the US, only owners of the most expensive homes in a local market will see a loss in housing tax deductions. But on the California coast and along the Northeastern seaboard, most homeowners - even those with homes valued below the median - will lose deductions they had pre-tax reform.

For homeowners of a median-priced house in the Bay Area, the loss of mortgage interest and property tax deductions could total more than $100,000 over the course of a 30-year mortgage, according to Salviati's calculations. The estimation does not factor in projected home price changes over that time period, however.

Below, we've listed the affect of Trump's tax law on homeowners of the highest-value homes - the 75th percentile - in 27 of the largest US metros, ranked by home value, using Salviati's calculations.

For each city, we've also provided estimated household income, tax deductions pre- and post-tax reform, and the total loss over a 30-year mortgage, according to the Apartment List report. We excluded places with a population below 1 million and anywhere the difference in housing tax deductions was unchanged.

See How Trump's new tax law affects homeowners in major cities at every income level from $83,000 to $336,000 a year >>