197 Landlord Tax Questions Answered 2012/13

Buy-to-let landlords: Get all your tax-saving questions answered.

197 Landlord Tax Questions Answered provides answers to all your property tax questions and reveals the latest ways you can avoid landlord taxes.

Updated to include all the tax changes in the April 2012 Budget, this latest edition is packed with expert advice including an extra 50 new questions answered.

With tax rules often changing and an array of taxes being levied on the landlord, it’s hard to keep track on what landlord taxes you need to pay, how much property tax you need to pay and when.

In this tax-busting guide, property tax specialist Arthur Weller, author of How to Avoid Landlord Taxes, answers all your property tax questions on:

• Capital gains tax
• Buy-to-let tax
• Property development tax
• Transferring/gifting tax
• Inheritance tax
• And much, much more...

Need an answer to a property tax question? This indispensable tax guide gives you quick, digestible answers to practically all your landlord tax questions, including:

• What expenses can I offset against my property rental income?
• Can I claim private letting relief if I haven’t lived in the property?
• Can I offset property losses against my other earned income?
• Can I lease my commercial property to my limited company to save tax?
• Can I claim unused capital gains tax for previous years?
• Can my mother gift the proceeds of sale and live rent-free?
• Can I claim my costs for re-mortgaging?
• Can I offset a loan from my husband against my rental income?
• Can I maximise tax relief by grouping the value of my property portfolio together?

Plus this 2012 edition has 50 extra tax questions answered, including:

• Will I have to pay capital gains tax on a let property which was previously our main home?
• I am extending a leasehold flat lease; will there be anything tax deductible?
• What are the tax implications of making overpayments to my mortgage?
• When should we gift our son a property we are buying?
• Can I claim mortgage interest relief on my buy-to-let property?
• What tax will I pay on a property transferred to me?
• Can we merge our portfolio and split the income?
• How do capital allowances work for small commercial property investors?
• Can I claim council tax exemption on my empty house?

Presented in bite-size question-and-answer format, 197 Landlord Tax Questions Answered includes property tax-saving tips from the "pay less tax" experts and gives you the landlord knowledge to help you save money and avoid landlord taxes.

Download your guide NOW and learn how you can pay less landlord tax today!

About the Author

Arthur Weller is a Chartered Tax Advisor (CTA) who operates his own tax consultancy. He is known throughout the tax industry for his ability to resolve the most complex of tax issues and has over 10 years' experience in this field. 

Other Tax-Saving Guides from Lawpack:

• How to Avoid Landlord Taxes
• 101 Ways to Pay Less Tax
• Tax Answers at a Glance

147 Landlord Tax Questions Answered: Contents

1. What expenses can I offset against my property rental income?
2. Can I switch my property with my spouse if they are a lower rate taxpayer?
3. Can I claim private letting relief if I have not lived in the property? 
4. Is any property tax due for an unemployed person?
5. What is my stamp duty liability? 
6. What is the maximum amount of landlord tax I will pay on a property? 
7. Can I defer capital gains tax?
8. I am a pensioner; do I still need to pay landlord tax on my property profits?
9. Can I change my ‘intention’ to help reduce my property tax bill?
10. What is the most tax efficient way to take out a mortgage?
11. What is rent-a-room relief? 
12. I am forced to rent. Can I offset the rent I am charged?
13. What is my inheritance tax liability? 
14. Can I offset property losses against my other earned income?
15. Is property now classed as ‘business income’? 
16. Is there a limit to the amount that can be claimed as ‘tax relief’? 
17. Can I offset the cost of buying a vehicle? 
18. What capital gains tax liability for property that is partly principal private residence relief (PPR)?
19. Can this interest be claimed as a business expense?
20. Should I move into my previously rented out property? 
21. Can I offset money I paid to the tenant to leave my property?
22. Can I select a property as my PPR if I haven’t lived in it?
23. What is my tax treatment for a flat conversion? 
24. Should I contact the HMRC myself or wait for them to contact me?
25. Is there a tax efficient way to make gifts?
26. Can I offset the loss incurred in year two against income earned? 
27. Is there a difference when offsetting interest? 
28. Can I offset the cost for extending the property lease?
29. Can I give a family member a financial gift? 
30. Is there any property tax if I keep my rental income in Dubai? 
31. How do you 'gift a property in stages' to use annual capital gains tax exemptions?
32. How will a discretionary trust reduce the inheritance tax liability?
33. Can I avoid capital gains tax by sending sales proceeds to the Isle of Man? 
34. Is letting relief restricted to the upper limit of £40,000 per property? 
35. Can losses from property income be offset against ‘other income’? 
36. Can I increase borrowing to minimise or avoid capital gains tax?
37. Do I pay capital gains tax if I build two apartments within my PPR residence? 
38. Can I receive the rental income in my wife’s name? 
39. Can we save property tax by buying in our children’s names? 
40. Can I lease my commercial property to my limited company to save tax? 
41. I’m starting a property development business – should I incorporate?
42. I helped out my penniless brother, but will I be able to avoid capital gains tax?
43. How can I transfer property to my children and avoid capital gains tax?
44. Can my mother gift the proceeds of sale and live rent-free?
45. Will I pay capital gains tax or income tax? 
46. Will rent-a-room relief impact my planned buy-to-let purchase? 
47. How do I avoid landlord tax when converting a property into two dwellings? 
48. Can interest incurred in financing a development be offset? 
49. Can I avoid landlord tax by setting up a company to sell and leaseback furniture/furnishings for my buy-to-let properties?
50. Can I claim the cost of replacement kitchens for my buy-to-let property?
51. Is there capital gains tax due on a property purchased for my mother? 
52. Can I buy property for a child under the age of 18? 
53. Is there any property tax if I sell land that forms part of garden?
54. Can my client re-arrange his affairs to offset interest? 
55. If I die, will inheritance tax be due immediately? 
56. What is private letting relief? 
57. How do I minimise my children's inheritance tax on a property?
58. If I give a rented property to my child, what tax does she have to pay now and if she sells the property in the future?
59. What property tax do I pay if I immediately sell an inherited property? 
60. When do I pay my landlord tax if I have sold a property?
61. Can my partner and I merge our buy-to-let portfolio and split the income 50:50?
62. Is it worth my property company being registered for VAT?
63. How will a cashback offer affect my future capital gains tax?
64. How do I handle general portfolio costs?
65. Can I bring my undeclared loss forward? 
66. Is there any landlord tax if I sell my rented home?
67. I rent storage. Can I offset the costs?
68. Should I claim costs as ‘revenue costs’?
69. I am having my windows replaced, can I offset the cost as a ‘revenue cost’ or ‘capital cost’?
70. Can I claim my costs for remortgaging?
71. Are mortgage broker fees and mortgage lender's arrangement fees of a 'capital' or 'revenue' nature?
72. How do I switch between 10% wear & tear allowance and 'renewals'?
73. Can I use the 10% wear and tear allowance? 
74. Should I declare my rental losses? 
75. How can I avoid inheritance tax? 
76. Do I need to have receipts? 
77. At what rate do my inheritors pay inheritance tax?
78. What is the easiest way to avoid capital gains tax?
79. Can I offset costs if I have lived in the buy-to-let property? 
80. I have only used part of my capital gains tax allowance, so can I use it again? 
81. How do I use my capital gains tax allowance on the sale of a new build?
82. How do I remortgage a property after buying it with cash?
83. How do I offset the cost of a £5,000 property seminar?
84. How long must I live in a property before I get private residence relief?
85. Am I eligible for private residence relief?
86. Should I declare a non 50:50 property ownership split to the HMRC?
87. Is there any stamp duty if I swap properties?
88. My property is part residential and part business; can I claim PPR relief?
89. Can my mother gift the proceeds of sale to her children and live rent-free? 
90. Is it legal to sell a property to my daughter below market value to try to avoid property taxes?
91. Can I claim unused capital gains tax for previous years? 
92. Can I claim property tax relief on drawdown money held in a bank account? 
93. Can I offset the loss incurred in year two against income earned in year one? 
94. Can I maximise landlord tax relief by grouping the value of my portfolio together?
95. If my brother-in-law moves out, will he retain ownership of his share of the property? 
96. Can service charges and building improvements be deducted from the rental income? 
97. I've been living in a property since I purchased it and then have let it out for 2 years and sold it. Will I have to pay capital gains tax?
98. Can I use my annual tax free allowance against property income if I live in Germany? 
99. What is the capital gains tax allowance?
100. Can I transfer a rental property into my wife's name to take advantage of her personal tax allowance?
101. What are the tax implications of selling my house at below market value to my sister?
102. Can I transfer my capital gains tax allowance?
103. Can I offset a loan from my husband against my rental income? 
104. Can I transfer my property of £300,000 to someone else for £60,000? 
105. How can my partner reduce his capital gains tax on a property that he has never lived in?
106. Can my son live rent free in my UK property?
107. Can our property business hire my self-employed partner?
108. Can my husband transfer our property into my sole name upon divorce if I pay him a £10,000 settlement?
109. Is my building of a house classed as a property trade?
110. Will my rental income affect my tax credits?
111. Non-refundable fees – how will I be taxed?
112. Can my brother discount his share of the property?
113. How do I report my taxes when starting out as a buy-to-let landlord?
114. Can I claim mortgage relief?
115. Are we liable to pay tax on interest-free loans?
116. Do I have to pay tax on my UK property?
117. Can I offset my pension repayments?
118. How much capital gains tax will I have to pay?
119. Can I pay a family member to manage my property?
120. What is the tax date for capital gains tax purposes?
121. Can we offset costs (i.e. mortgage, council tax and service charges) of our rental flat for the full tax year against income tax on the rent?
122. If I move back into my rental property for 6 months, will I still be liable to capital gains as I'm selling the house that I live in?
123. Can mortgage interest be offset?
124. How can I avoid paying capital gains tax?
125. Having paid off our mortgage some years ago, we've been offered a job with accommodation provided. Can we rent out our house and remortgage it to pay less tax on the rental income?
126. How should my cohabiting partner and I split the ownership of our rental property to avoid capital gains tax?
127. Can I deduct capital expenses from my buy-to-let profits?
128. If I buy a property as a new company and carry out building work, can I claim back the VAT spent?
129. Can I add my mother to my mortgage to reduce tax?
130. Can I offset interest from our re-mortgage?
131. How do I work out capital gains tax (CGT)?
132. When do I pay capital gains tax (CGT)?
133. Should I buy property in my sole name or in joint names with my husband?
134. Can I pay myself for the time spent on managing my property business?
135. Will I be liable for capital gains tax (CGT) on the income from let property?
136. Will I just pay capital gains tax on the market value if I sell an inherited property?
137. Can we gift our buy-to-let (BTL) property to our children?
138. What can I offset against income from my HMO properties?
139. I now live in Australia, but will I have to pay capital gains tax when selling my UK property?
140. Should I gift or use a lease?
141. How can we avoid capital gains (CGT)?
142. Should I pay cash or get a mortgage to purchase buy to let property?
143. Are re-decorating and re-carpeting, plus replacement boiler and electrics, legitimate expenses?
144. How do I go about submitting a tax return without the help of an accountant?
145. How long should I live in a property for it to become my main residence?
146. Do people 80 plus have to pay council tax?
147. Can my brother ‘gift’ me a share of a property in his name?