What Are Itemized Tax Deductions and How Can They Save You Money?

Deductions on your taxes help you to save money at the end of the year.  However, itemizing deductions can help you save more money than if you were to simply take your standard deduction.  What are itemized deductions and how can they help with your taxes?

First, it helps to know what can be itemized on your taxes.  There are actually quite a few deductions that can be made here.  You can deduct the interest from your mortgage from your taxes, for example.  You can also deduct any charitable contributions you have made (qualifying deductions, of course). 

In addition, property taxes can be deducted from your taxes, as can state and local income taxes.  If you have medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of your adjusted income, these can also be deducted from your annual taxes.

There are also miscellaneous expenses that can be taken off of your taxes every year.  These include the cost of tools for work, some types of legal fees, dues paid to your union and quite a few others, as well.

The question of whether or not to itemize on your taxes is one that might require professional tax help.  While you can save money by doing this, it is not always beneficial.  Often, you will actually save more by taking your standard deduction. 

The best way to tell for certain how much you can save on your taxes is to go through a licensed tax preparer.  Going it alone is certainly possible, but there are certain things that you might miss, and will cost you more in the long run.