We filed married jointly last year--can I switch to married separately in 2025?

Question

I own my house with my ex-in-laws, and last year I claimed our house on the joint return with my new husband. My in-laws do not pay any of the mortgage, but they are on the house title. The have never claimed the house on their return as I have paid all payments. My question is if I file separately this year, shouldn't I be able claim all the mortgage interest/deductions without any going to my current husband's separate return since he is not on title, and I bought the house before we married in 2023?

kiarab · Answer

When I mentioned a joint return, it was because while your husband didn't pay any of the interest, he still benefited from it since you filed a joint return and you claimed what you paid. But if you are filing a separate return, he shouldn't claim any payments that he did not make. If you made all of the interest payments, you should be able to claim them all.

melansties-tardu · Answer

I did file a joint return last year, but this year I am filing married separately. I just want to be sure that I can claim all the interest. We also have separate checking accounts, and all payments were made from my checking account. So I am able to deduct all the interest on my separate return, correct?

kiarab · Answer

Hello,

Generally, if there is more than one borrower, you are supposed to claim the amount of interest you personally paid. (See "More than One Borrower:

https://www.irs.gov/publications/p936#en_US_2023_publink1000229982

)

So if your in-laws or husband didn't pay interest, then they shouldn't claim any deduction for interest paid since they didn't personally make a payment. The only exception for this, really, is if you filed a joint return with your husband.