The New York Times Magazine has an interesting article in this week on the mortgage  interest deduction. The article comes from a  left of center perspective and has the obligatory bash the  rich that seems to be a qualifier for inclusion in  the New York Times Magazine, but when you get passed that, it is a very good article on the history of the mortgage deduction.  Give it a read and let  me know what you think.

By then, I did know something about what the government was up to. Or at least I thought I did. Some fellow in the Treasury Department had long ago decided it would be a good thing for families like ours not to suffer through our lives as tenants. In fact, he (whoever he was) decided it would be good for our neighbors and for society in general if we could be owners and not just dwellers. In early America, only those who owned property were eligible to vote, and the notion that tenants were only provisional citizens, or at least had a lesser stake in things, has somehow endured. According to studies, people who own their homes take better care of them; they fix the roof more often and plant more lilacs. They join more clubs and community groups; they vote more often; they move around less often; and their kids do better in school. The government is subsidizing my house so I will do more gardening. Or something like that.

Read the Rest at the New York Times Magazine

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1. Federal Judge To Mortgage Companies: Show Paperwork or There is No Mortgage
2. Mortgage Bankers Association Propose Dismantling of Freddie, Fannie
3. For Those Who Forget, How We Got Into This Mortgage Mess
4. Why The Politicians Are Wrong To Panic Now
5. Hispanic Road To Distruction in Home Buying Initiatives By Congress And Lenders