What do I need to know about year-end mortgage tax documents & forms?

If you aren’t too excited to see your mortgage tax documents at the end of the year, you should be, if only for the mortgage interest deduction.  

Your year-end mortgage statement will detail what you can itemize on your taxes to deduct any mortgage interest you paid. Please keep in mind that it's important to talk to a tax expert about new rules on deductions and how to use them. 

Here’s more on what you can expect from your mortgage interest statement, also called Form 1098. 

A year-end statement known as IRS Form 1098 shows how much mortgage interest, mortgage points and property taxes you have paid that year. It also includes how much you have left to pay on your mortgage. You can find a sample form here. 

Standardized Form 1098 shows the same information for every lender. It should show the name and address of the mortgage lender, as well as the taxpayer identification number (TIN) of the lender. This number is used by the IRS as a tracking number for all that institution’s tax purposes. 

The form also should include your name, address and TIN, which is most likely your Social Security number. There are also numbered boxes for information about your mortgage and payments for the year. 

This is amount of interest you paid on your mortgage during the calendar year, including interest on a home equity loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC). 

This is the amount of the original loan you are obligated to pay. It’s calculated from the original purchase price minus the amount of principal you’ve paid on the loan. 

This is the date your mortgage agreement was originated. It’s most likely the date you closed on the home. 

If you paid more in interest on your mortgage than you were supposed to for the year and received a refund for that, it would be listed here. 

For borrowers paying private mortgage insurance (PMI), the amount you paid is listed in this box. 

If you bought down your mortgage interest rate by paying for points when you got your loan, that information should be reflected in this box.

If the address of the property securing a mortgage is the same as the payer’s/borrower’s address, the box is checked, or the address or description is entered in Box 8, this box confirms that the property being used to secure your mortgage is your residence. If this box is unchecked, additional information is required in Box 8. 

If your primary residence isn’t the property that is securing the mortgage, the address of the property that is securing the mortgage should be listed in this box.

If there is more than one property being used to secure the mortgage, they should all be listed in this box.

This is for miscellaneous information that the lender would like to report, such as real estate taxes or insurance paid from escrow. 

The lender will enter the date it acquired the mortgage if it was obtained within the previous calendar year. 

The mortgage interest deduction is available to all homeowners with a mortgage. It’s part of the U.S. tax code and allows you to deduct the interest you pay on any loan used to buy, build or make improvements on your home. This includes second homes and vacation homes. 

Your tax professional can help you determine whether it’s more beneficial for you to itemize your deductions or to take the standard deduction. 

Each company has its own mail delivery method, but forms are required to be sent out by Jan. 31. Some companies may offer digital copies of your statement. 

If your loan servicing has been retained by Rate and you have made payments online, you can access your form at our servicing portal. 

_{Rate does not provide tax advice. The consumer should always consult a tax advisor for information regarding the deductibility of interest and other charges in their particular situation.}