COHABITING COUPLE

JOHN AND MARY are not married and have been living together for the past nine years.

They jointly own their family home in Co Westmeath. John also owns an apartment in Dublin, which he lived in prior to moving in with Mary and he currently rents the property to young professionals.

John works as a bank manager and he also has rental income.

Mary stays at home to look after their two children, aged seven and eight.

Before the Budget, John was entitled to take a full deduction for mortgage interest payments on his rental property when computing his rental profit for income tax purposes. John is disappointed that he can now only claim a deduction for 75 per cent of the amount of his mortgage interest in computing his rental profit for income tax purposes.

As a result, his taxable income has increased.

Both John and Mary are disappointed that the Minister has increased the rates of the income levy and the health levy, as this will have a significant impact on their monthly disposable income.

As a result of the Budget, John and Mary are now worse off by €250 a month.