Property Tax Insider Monthly Newsletter

Buy-to-let (BTL) ‘partnerships’ are probably at the peak of their popularity at the moment.

The basic point of running your BTL property portfolio as a ‘partnership’ (commonly a partnership between husband and wife), is to  achieve significant tax savings.  

However, Alan Pink looks below the surface of some strange business arrangements, and points to some possible unintended consequences of partnership changes. 

Landlords appear to be among the forgotten when it comes to financial help to deal with the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak. Sarah Bradford considers whether there is any help available for landlords affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Landlords have had a rough ride in recent years. For example, changes in mortgage relief, stamp duty land tax (SDLT), lettings relief and in the timing for payments for capital gains tax (CGT) purposes on residential properties have made being a landlord a lot less lucrative than it once was. Meg Saksida covers the issues that need to be considered when ceasing to let out rental properties.

I am no fan of the cash basis. Generally speaking, whenever HMRC or the Treasury tout something as a simplification. Lee Sharpe admits (grudgingly!) that the cash basis may have a role to play for landlords during the Covid-19 pandemic. But reverting back to generally accepted accounting practice once it has passed may also be very useful.

Some (predominantly online) businesses have prospered from the coronavirus pandemic while millions of people have been encouraged to stay at home, but most businesses have suffered. 

Lee Sharpe looks at the implications for landlords whose tenants are struggling to pay rent in the Coronavirus era.

Where a landlord lets a property furnished, domestic items will be provided for use by the tenants. Special rules apply to determine both the timing and extent to which tax relief is available for the costs incurred in relation to the provision of domestic goods.

Sarah Bradford explains how landlords can obtain tax relief for replacement domestic items.  

Is it a capital or an income expense? This is a question that is commonly asked when calculating a tax computation for a let property.

Meg Saksida reviews the classification and clears up some common confusion.

The expression ‘putting someone on the property deeds’ is commonly used to describe changing the legal ownership of a property, such as an individual’s home.

Mark McLaughlin looks at inheritance tax issues of ‘putting someone on the deeds’ of an individual’s home.

Many married couples and civil partners invest jointly in property, which they rent out to generate an income. From a tax perspective, it makes sense for that rental income to be taxed on the partner with the lowest marginal rate of tax.

Sarah Bradford examines the default 50:50 rule when taxing income from the jointly-owned property of spouses or civil partners and explains how to avoid falling foul of the rule.

In the case of ‘ordinary’ let property, it’s true to say that the question of whether the property is fully furnished, partly furnished, or unfurnished is of less importance now than it used to be.

Alan Pink looks at the reliefs available for furnishing and fitting out let property.

This article is based on English law and readers should note that there are differences between the UK jurisdictions. Treatment in the EU, and further afield, can also be quite different.

Lee Sharpe looks at tax aspects of using trusts to hold investment properties for loved ones.

It is difficult to think of a scheme more strongly disliked by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) than the ‘home loan’ (sometimes referred to as the ‘IOU’) scheme for inheritance tax (IHT) purposes.

Mark McLaughlin highlights a case on an inheritance tax scheme involving the family home.