Subject: Re: Drug costs $25. Sells for $25k.
Only if your mortgage deduction combined with other allowed itemized deduction exceeds the standard deduction, do you actually get any tax benefit. You should be counting only the itemized deduction exceeding the standard deduction and prorating across all itemized deductions to get the true tax savings you realized.

True, but that’s a fairly recent development. During most of my mortgage paying lifetime the “deduction” seemed significant so I understand how people were seduced by it. The most recent revisions in the tax laws have changed things (and frankly I don’t pay attention anymore to such things because they don’t affect me.)