Letters: Property investors, private health patients, Pharmac and democracy 25 Feb, 2021 04:00 PM 8 minutes to read To address the housing issue Parliament has the mandate to make firm decisions, writes Scotty Yates. Photo / File NZ Herald All benefits to property investors Murray Higgs (NZ Herald, February 24) highlighted how unjust it is that property investors claim interest as a tax deductible item. Those struggling to own and live in their own home can't claim the tax deduction. They service the mortgage with already taxed income. Yet another benefit to a property investor is their ability to borrow. They offer banks multiple security with the number of tenanted homes. Easy to buy yet another property. But a private home owner may only be able to offer the security of servicing the interest by two incomes. Then the issue if one contributor's income is threatened. Perhaps pregnancy or illness. The ability to service the mortgage is halved and access to a loan perhaps lost.