The deductions many Long Islanders take on federal taxes

Nassau County ranks sixth in the nation and Suffolk is 15th in the percentage of home owners paying more than $10,000 in property taxes, according to Attom Data Solutions, a company that tracks real estate data. Roughly half the homes in Nassau and nearly a third of the homes in Suffolk surpass the $10,000 level for property taxes, one of the deductions being altered in the tax legislation before Congress.

Many of the counties that rank higher than Nassau or Suffolk have a smaller number of homes overall. Here’s how they break down.

Homes over or under the $10,000 property tax level

County, State	$0 – $10,000	Over $10,000	Percent over $10,000
Westchester, NY	45,294	125,190	73.4%
Luna, NM	4,861	10,691	68.7%
Rockland, NY	29,090	43,622	60.0%
Mathews, VA	2,233	2,665	54.4%
New York, NY	56,995	63,023	52.5%
NASSAU, NY	172,745	176,946	50.6%
Bergen, NJ	130,142	126,096	49.2%
Essex, NJ	79,401	74,540	48.4%
Union, NJ	73,499	57,260	43.8%
Morris, NJ	93,837	62,269	39.9%
Passaic, NJ	66,984	43,499	39.4%
Hunterdon, NJ	27,420	16,042	36.9%
Somerset, NJ	67,261	39,161	36.8%
Marin, CA	50,018	26,781	34.9%
SUFFOLK, NY	316,744	155,592	32.9%
Fairfield, CT	177,992	76,573	30.1%
Santa Clara, CA	300,693	121,186	28.7%
Lake, IL	157,476	61,163	28.0%
Monmouth, NJ	160,289	58,852	26.9%
Mercer, NJ	82,998	28,328	25.4%

State and local tax deductions on LI by income bracket

More than 250,000 Long Islanders making between $100,000 and $200,000 take deductions on their federal returns for state and local taxes, according to data provided by the IRS. The average deduction taken in that income bracket is $17,868 in Nassau County and $16,786 in Suffolk County. That income group is the largest taking such deductions, although filers in other income brackets also take advantage of the deductions. (You can read more about what the new tax system might mean for Long Island home owners.

Taxpayers in general

While the $100,000 to $200,000 bracket was the largest for taking state and local deductions, the largest group overall for taxpayers on Long Island are those making up to $25,000 a year. (Not included in these charts and tables is a small percentage of tax filers (9,640 in Nassau and 7,670 in Suffolk), who had adjusted gross incomes of less than $1 and paid no tax.)

Property tax deductions

Nearly matching the breakdown on those taking state and local tax deductions, the largest group on Long Island taking property tax deductions on their federal returns is the $100,000 to $200,000 bracket.

Mortgage interest deductions

Again, nearly matching the breakdown on those taking state and local tax deductions, the largest group on Long Island taking mortgage interest deductions is also the $100,000 to $200,000 bracket.

Details on what people earn or deduct, on average, in each bracket

The category of state and local taxes includes state and local income tax, sales tax and real estate, or property taxes, as well as some smaller categories of tax.

INCOME REPORTED	Nassau returns	Nassau average amount	Suffolk returns	Suffolk average amount
$1 up to $25,000	212,040	$11,479	246,610	$11,988
$25,000 under $50,000	124,030	$37,348	153,660	$37,075
$50,000 under $75,000	89,460	$62,671	100,650	$62,466
$75,000 under $100,000	66,900	$87,858	73,750	$87,800
$100,000 under $200,000	137,430	$141,746	141,070	$139,762
$200,000 or more	74,480	$585,426	53,410	$506,144
DEDUCTIONS TAKEN FOR:	Nassau returns	Nassau average amount	Suffolk returns	Suffolk average amount
All state and local tax
$1 up to $25,000	21,550	$8,092	23,510	$7,130
$25,000 under $50,000	39,620	$8,387	45,880	$7,769
$50,000 under $75,000	49,420	$10,105	55,360	$9,474
$75,000 under $100,000	49,870	$12,460	54,860	$11,749
$100,000 under $200,000	126,570	$17,868	128,920	$16,786
$200,000 or more	73,720	$63,987	52,810	$52,945
All income brackets	360,750	$23,856	361,340	$18,413
State/local income tax
$1 up to $25,000	7,270	$1,885	8,460	$1,449
$25,000 under $50,000	26,620	$1,975	31,180	$1,841
$50,000 under $75,000	39,620	$3,199	44,680	$3,025
$75,000 under $100,000	42,630	$4,557	46,720	$4,382
$100,000 under $200,000	116,650	$7,909	118,080	$7,616
$200,000 or more	72,010	$46,200	51,110	$38,623
All income brackets	304,800	$15,213	300,230	$10,934
State/local general sales tax
$1 up to $25,000	12,550	$614	13,180	$707
$25,000 under $50,000	11,950	$911	13,480	$1,181
$50,000 under $75,000	9,110	$1,172	9,930	$1,393
$75,000 under $100,000	6,710	$1,422	7,600	$1,601
$100,000 under $200,000	9,180	$1,859	10,130	$2,083
$200,000 or more	1,530	$2,940	1,560	$3,281
All income brackets	51,030	$1,183	55,880	$1,386
Real estate tax
$1 up to $25,000	16,650	$9,020	18,150	$7,840
$25,000 under $50,000	27,490	$9,514	33,540	$8,197
$50,000 under $75,000	36,630	$9,651	43,920	$8,369
$75,000 under $100,000	40,150	$10,203	47,090	$8,935
$100,000 under $200,000	112,350	$11,563	118,640	$10,322
$200,000 or more	69,530	$19,653	50,390	$16,028
All income brackets	302,800	$12,683	311,730	$10,387
Mortgage interest
$1 up to $25,000	8,900	$7,270	10,920	$7,260
$25,000 under $50,000	17,530	$7,810	23,730	$7,434
$50,000 under $75,000	25,870	$8,077	33,510	$7,598
$75,000 under $100,000	30,260	$8,722	37,810	$8,246
$100,000 under $200,000	91,550	$10,340	101,070	$9,811
$200,000 or more	55,410	$15,168	41,960	$14,077
All income brackets	229,520	$10,725	249,000	$9,656

IRS data is for the 2015 tax year, the latest available. Attom data is for current year. JavaScript charts via amCharts.