Here’s the second-home mortgage tax break few Americans know exists

At a time when millions of would-be homebuyers are locked out of the market, a select group of homeowners is claiming a huge tax break—for second homes.

Known as the mortgage interest deduction, this century-old provision allows homeowners to deduct interest paid on up to $750,000 in mortgage debt, including loans on vacation homes, beach houses, and ski condos—as long as they itemize their taxes.

But while the deduction was originally intended as a break for the many, the doubling of the standard deduction in 2017 under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act unwittingly made this a tax cut for the few.

That’s because fewer people itemized their deductions, instead opting for the easier and now more generous standard deduction.

Repealing the benefit for second homes could generate between $43 billi