Angela Petty outlines how the pre-commencement expenditure rules can provide tax relief for repairs incurred before the first letting.
A landlord, or property company, buys its first investment property. Before the first tenant moves in, repairs are carried out, the property is redecorated, services are updated and perhaps work is undertaken to meet safety requirements. No rental income has yet been received. Can the expenditure be deducted?
The answer is not automatically ‘no’ simply because the costs were incurred before the first letting.
The ‘pre-commencement rules
