when a taxpayer has significant eligible expenses that exceed the standard deduction filing schedule a makes sense mortgage interest on an expensive home is often a good benchmark for deciding which to choose 
if your annual mortgage interest found on your mortgage interest statement or form 1098 is higher than the standard deduction it is advantageous to itemize deductions on schedule a you can deduct home mortgage interest on the first 750 000 375 000 if married filing separately of indebtedness however higher limitations of 1 million or 500 000 if married filing separately apply if you deduct mortgage interest from debt incurred before dec 16 2017 