TaxProf Blog: Sullivan: The Rich Get 100 Times More Mortgage Subsidy Than the Poor

TaxProf Blog: Sullivan: The Rich Get 100 Times More Mortgage Subsidy Than the Poor: "Providing about $100 billion of tax benefits annually, the mortgage interest deduction is the nation's largest housing program. So where are these subsidies distributed? Those readers with some scintilla of idealism might hope it goes to those most in need. So naïve! The tax benefit provided by the mortgage interest deduction flows overwhelmingly to rich families like those portrayed in the hit television series Beverly Hills, 90210. We've done the math and, as shown in the figure, the average annual per-person tax benefit provided by the mortgage interest deduction for the residents of 90210 is $1,873. For the residents of Clarksdale 38614, it is $45."