I am a single female and have owned my home for 10 years. I have a very low interest rate. For the past 10 years, I have not claimed my mortgage interest as a deduction. I have never met the threshold of the standard deduction. I recently heard that I should be able to claim my mortgage interest, regardless of whether the standard deduction is more beneficial. Also, this past year I’ve had new windows and siding put on my house. I’ve seen articles that I might be able to get a small credit for the improvements. Is this true?

If your mortgage interest combined with other itemized deductions — certain medical expenses in excess of 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income, state income taxes withheld and paid, real estate tax, personal property tax and charitable contributions, for example — exceed the standard deduction, it will be beneficial to itemize your deductions. Note that the standard deduction has increased every year, so a review of the potential itemized deductions from the prior three years could result in the ability to itemize those deductions and claim them on an amended return. It just depends on the actual amounts for each year.

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