Just focusing on income tax, HMRC assume that when you buy a property/investment property its owned 50/50 between husband and wife or civil partners living together, this set out in the Income tax Act s 836. However, this rule will not apply in any of the following instances:
the income is from furnished holiday lettings;
there is actually a partnership in which case the income is divided according to the terms of the partnership agreement;
both husband and wife, or both civil partners, have signed a declaration stating their beneficial interests in both the property and the income arising from it.
When you make a declaration it must apply equally to ownership and income and a couple must be married or civil partners, you can’t be separated or divorced or joint tenants.
You can use this form to declare a beneficial interest if you hold property jointly and:
• you actually own the property in unequal shares, and
• you are entitled to the income arising in proportion to those shares, and
• you want to be taxed on that basis.
Form 17 must be submitted with in 60 days of completion, in addition a Declaration of Trust is likely to be required.
If there is a change, even a minor change, after submitting the Form 17 it will be invalid and revert to 50/50.
If the property is held in a single name it may be possible to use a declaration of trust to confirm joint beneficial interest.
Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax will be be based on the beneficial interest in the property, so if one spouse is a higher rate tax payer and the other a lower rate tax payer changing the proportion of ownership could have a significant tax advantage.
There is no default ownership for unmarried property owners.
Property owners may also need to agree the split with their mortgage lender.
There are special tax rules for rental income from properties that qualify as Furnished Holiday Lettings (FHLs).
If you let properties that qualify as FHLs:
you can claim Capital Gains Tax reliefs for traders (Business Asset Rollover Relief, Entrepreneurs’ Relief, relief for gifts of business assets and relief for loans to traders)
you are entitled to plant and machinery capital allowances for items such as furniture, equipment and fixtures
the profits count as earnings for pension purposes
The Interest Rate Relief Restrictions don’t apply – these rules only affect Buy to Let Investors
The letting condition
You must let the property commercially as furnished holiday accommodation to the public for at least 105 days in the year (70 days for the tax year 2011 to 2012 and earlier).
The availability condition
Your property must be available for letting as furnished holiday accommodation letting for at least 210 days in the year (140 days for the tax year 2011 to 2012 and earlier).
The government proposes that properties bought as furnished holiday lets should be treated in the same way as all other residential properties – if the property is purchased as an additional property the higher rates will apply.
A Company could help you save tax
The current rate of Corporation Tax is 19%.
Not only that, its the same rate no matter how many companies you have, previously when there were multiple Corporation Rate if you had associated companies the small companies rate was reduce in a marginal rate calculation.
Stamp Duty (SDLT) on selling Shares is 0.5%.
Example – So £1,995 × 0.5% = £9.97. This is rounded up to the nearest £5, which means you pay £10 Stamp Duty.
One of the big benefits of Shares is that its easy to split ownership.
Potentially Exempt Transfers (PET’s) allow you to give away shares provided you survive more that 7 years after the transfer, shares make PETs easy and simple.
When you give away shares it will potentially trigger a capital gain but you will be able to use your personal capital gains allowance of £12,300 to offset this gain.
The Budget announced that from 6 April 2017 any adult under 40 will be able to open a new Lifetime ISA. They can save up to £4,000 each year and will receive a 25% bonus from the government on every pound they put in.
This is why you should get one!
25% Bonus – free money is always good
It encourages you to save – building up savings for a house or retirement will definitely be of benefit
The under 40’s will probably see this as better than a pension plan, as you can’t access pensions until you are 55
Personally Pensions are still my favourite…
Lets say you invest £10,000 per year of earned gross income, increasing each year by 3% for inflation and see the effect of tax relief at 40% and 20%, assuming a return on the investment of 7% (which you should get with Commercial Property Investment)
40% Tax Rate
20% Tax Rate
Year
Pension
No Pension
% Diff
Year
Pension
No Pension
% Diff
1
£10,700
£6,252
71%
1
£10,700
£8,336
28%
2
£22,470
£12,954
73%
2
£22,470
£17,272
30%
3
£35,395
£20,131
76%
3
£35,395
£26,841
32%
4
£49,564
£27,808
78%
4
£49,564
£37,078
34%
5
£65,077
£36,013
81%
5
£65,077
£48,017
36%
6
£82,036
£44,773
83%
6
£82,036
£59,698
37%
7
£100,555
£54,119
86%
7
£100,555
£72,158
39%
8
£120,754
£64,081
88%
8
£120,754
£85,441
41%
9
£142,761
£74,692
91%
9
£142,761
£99,590
43%
10
£166,715
£85,987
94%
10
£166,715
£114,649
45%
11
£192,765
£98,000
97%
11
£192,765
£130,667
48%
12
£221,070
£110,771
100%
12
£221,070
£147,694
50%
13
£251,801
£124,337
103%
13
£251,801
£165,782
52%
14
£285,140
£138,740
106%
14
£285,140
£184,987
54%
15
£321,285
£154,024
109%
15
£321,285
£205,365
56%
16
£360,445
£170,233
112%
16
£360,445
£226,978
59%
17
£402,846
£187,416
115%
17
£402,846
£249,888
61%
18
£448,731
£205,621
118%
18
£448,731
£274,161
64%
19
£498,358
£224,901
122%
19
£498,358
£299,868
66%
20
£552,006
£245,309
125%
20
£552,006
£327,079
69%
Even when you consider:
Your money is locked up till you are 55
You pay tax when you take money out of the pension
You can get 25% out of the pension tax free
The difference in growth is massive
If you do salary sacrifice you can increase the tax effect by saving national insurance too.
A 3% surcharge on stamp duty when some buy-to-let properties and second homes are bought will be levied from April 2016.
This means it will add £5,520 of tax to be paid when buying the average £184,000 buy-to-let property. The new charge would have hit 160,000 buyers if it had applied last year.
But, commercial property investors, with more than 15 properties, will be exempt from the new charges.
Stamp Duty on Selling Shares is 0.5% so why aren’t more investors buying property into companies and then selling the shares in the company!
Mortgage Interest
Mortgage Interest offset against property income will be restricted
2017/18
75% of the interest can be claimed in full and 25% will get relief at 20%
2018/19
50% of the interest can be claimed in full and 50% will get relief at 20%
2019/20
25% of the interest can be claimed in full and 75% will get relief at 20%
2020/21
100% will get only 20% relief
For a 20% tax payer that’s fine but for higher rate taxpayer it’s a disaster that will lead to them paying a lot more tax
These rules will not apply to Companies, Companies will continue to claim full relief.
Capital Gains
From April 2016, the higher rate of Capital Gains Tax will be cut from 28% to 20% and the basic rate from 18% to 10%.
There will be an additional 8% surcharge to be paid on residential property.
Capital Gains Tax on residential property does not apply to your main home, only to additional properties (for example a flat that you let out).
Wear & Tear
Landlords have been used to claiming 10% of rental income as a tax deductible wear and tear allowance, but that will change in April 2016.
The Wear and Tear Allowance for fully furnished properties will be replaced with a relief that enables all landlords of residential dwelling houses to deduct the costs they actually incur on replacing furnishings, appliances and kitchenware in the property.
The relief given will be for the cost of a like-for-like, or nearest modern equivalent, replacement asset, plus any costs incurred in disposing of, or less any proceeds received for, the asset being replaced.
What could a Property Investor do to reduce the impact of these changes?
Incorporation – could you save money by incorporating your residential investments, would you qualify for incorporation tax relief
Pension Contributions – Pension Contributions currently receive tax relief at your rate of tax – 20% to 45% – so if you are a 40% tax payer you would need pay half the value of your 20% restricted interest into your pension to mitigate the extra tax
Change of Use – would your Buy to Let be able to be converted to a Furnished Holiday Let? or another type of commercial property on which the interest restriction won’t apply
Increasing the Rent – Could you charge more to cover the extra taxes?
Spouse Income Tax Elections – If the property is jointly held HMRC assume a 50/50 split of the income but you can change that using Form 17 this might be useful if one of you is a basic rate taxpayer and the other a higher rate taxpayer
Tax Deductible Expenses – Many landlords overlook expenses at the moment but they could become a lot more important, for example, use of your home, motor expenses, computers, travel and subsistence, phone costs etc
The governments’ plan is to restrict individuals on claiming mortgage interest as a cost against their property investment income, for individuals it will work as follows
2017/18 75% of the interest can be claimed in full and 25% will get relief at 20%
2018/19 50% of the interest can be claimed in full and 50% will get relief at 20%
2019/20 25% of the interest can be claimed in full and 75% will get relief at 20%
2020/21 100% will get only 20% relief
For a 20% tax payer that’s fine but for higher rate taxpayer its a disaster that will lead to them paying a lot more tax
These rules will not apply to Companies, Companies will continue to claim full relief.
What could a Property Investor do to reduce the impact of these changes?
Here are a few ideas….
Pension Contributions – Pension Contributions currently receive tax relief at your rate of tax – 20% to 45% – so if you are a 40% tax payer you would need pay half the value of your 20% restricted interest into your pension to mitigate the extra tax
Change of Use – would your Buy to Let be able to be converted to a Furnished Holiday Let? or anther type of commercial property on which the restriction won’t apply
Increasing the Rent – Could you charge more to cover the extra tax?
Spouse Income Tax Elections – If the property is jointly held HMRC assume a 50/50 split of the income but you can change that using Form 17 this might be useful if one of you is a basic rate taxpayer and the other a higher rate taxpayer
Tax Deductible Expenses – Many landlords overlook expenses at the moment but they could become a lot more important, for example, use of your home, motor expenses, computers, travel and subsistence, phone costs etc
What do you plan to do when the changes take effect?
First lets have a recap on why Pensions are a fantastic investment and a great way to save tax.
Inheritance Tax
IHT only applies if the pension company has to pay the value of your scheme to your estate, in which case it becomes like any other asset, but generally the pension pot is held in a discretionary trust, which means it isn’t taxed on death.
You can now nominate anyone not just dependents to be the beneficiary.
Since 6th April 2015 anyone who inherits a pension fund from a person who dies before the age of 75 is entitled to receive it tax free and the you can take the money as a lump sum or income. Once over 75 a special tax of 45% applies (previously 55%), you could reduce this by taking a regular income. The tax rate should drop again in April 2016.
Business Premises
Your pension can own Commercial Property, including your own business premises.
In many cases it is better for business premises to be owned by the business owners pension fund because:
The object of the business is not to own its own property, the objective should be for the business to make profits from trading
The business could use cash tied up in the premises to invest in trading activities
Pensions are a very tax efficient method of ownership – no capital gains, no tax on rental profits
Company Pension Contributions are Tax Deductible and Individual contributions get income tax refunds
You may be able to use 3 year Carry Forward to get funds into your pension scheme
Commercial Investment Property
Your pension scheme can own commercial investment property – shops, offices, industrial units.
It can borrow up to a third of the value of the pension scheme.
There is no capital gains tax and no tax on the rental income.
In Specie Transfers
In Specie transfers can be used to move assets into your pension scheme this could incur capital gains and SDLT (Stamp Duty), but you will benefit from tax relief as if you had paid in cash. Currently that means at tax relief of between 20% and 45%.
Once the assets are in a pension scheme transfers ‘in specie’ between schemes are tax free (no capital gains) and no SDLT.
HMRC say…
In our view the assumption by the transferee fund or by the trustees of the transferee fund, of obligations to provide benefits is not chargeable consideration.
Net Relevant Earnings (NRE)
Many owner managed businesses only pay small salaries and take large dividends, this would normally restrict the level of pension contributions allowed, however, their companies can pay the maximum allowed – currently £40k per year.
If you have a SSAS or a SIPP Pension you will probably want to invest some of your funds in Commercial Property – Shops, Office, Industrial Units. Pension funds can borrow money and with the current interest rates low and yields as high as 10%, you can increase your return and use less cash by borrowing.
But one thing you may not know is that connected parties can lend to the fund…
Trustees of registered pension schemes may sometimes wish to borrow funds, for example to enable them to purchase an asset. There is no objection to a registered pension scheme borrowing funds for any purpose providing that the scheme administrator/trustees are satisfied that the borrowing will benefit the scheme and that the borrowing is within the rules laid down by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
A registered pension scheme is treated as borrowing or having a liability of an amount, if that amount is to be repaid or met from cash or assets held for the purposes of the pension scheme.
A registered pension scheme may borrow funds from any individual, company or financial institution whether or not they are connected to the scheme, but any borrowing from a connected party which is not made on commercial terms will be subject to a tax charge – see RPSM04104020 .
This is useful where you have paid in the maximum allowed pension contributions but you still have cash, so you could lend to your pension to buy a property.
25% Tax Free
When you retire you get 25% of you pension fund tax free.
The potential benefits of the Family Pension Trust are:
Members, including minors, can pool funds together to benefit from a wider range of investment opportunities
Multiple common investment funds allow a variety of bespoke portfolios to be established for some or all members, which widens investment options and can reduce costs
Investment decisions do not have to be unanimous
Different attitudes to risk can be catered for
No minimum fund requirement
Increased borrowing potential
Succession planning options and death benefits
Comprehensive, flexible options to enable retirement income to be phased
Hargreaves Lansdown have a very helpful article on their Family SIPP which includes this example
Please note – always take professional advice from qualified professionals before setting up a pension, making investment decisions and transferring assets
The purpose of private residence relief is to relieve gains arising on the disposal of an individual’s residence so that the whole of the disposal proceeds are available to be used to buy a new residence of a similar standard. It is not intended to relieve speculative gains or gains arising from development.
The exclusion of speculative or development gains is achieved by TCGA92/S224 (3). It is important to understand the scope and limitations of this subsection so that you can apply it in suitable cases.
The subsection applies
where a dwelling house is acquired wholly or partly for the purpose of realising a gain from its disposal, or
where there is subsequent expenditure on the dwelling house wholly or partly for the purpose of realising a gain from its disposal.
Where the first part of the subsection applies no relief is due on any gain accruing from the disposal of the dwelling house. Where the second part of the subsection applies no relief is due on any part of the gain attributable to the expenditure.
If you plan to develop your property prior to sale it could be worth transferring it to company before any work is carried out, this could help to ensure that any gain to the date of transfer will be exempt from tax.
There is a further potential risk that HMRC may view the property development as a trading activity.
There are many reasons why residential property investors are now rushing to incorporate, the biggest reason being the Restriction of Mortgage Interest Tax Relief.
Clause 24 of the Finance Bill sets out plans is to restrict individuals on claiming mortgage interest as a cost against their property investment income, for individuals it will work as follows
2017/18 75% of the interest can be claimed in full and 25% will get relief at 20%
2018/19 50% of the interest can be claimed in full and 50% will get relief at 20%
2019/20 25% of the interest can be claimed in full and 75% will get relief at 20%
2020/21 100% will get only 20% relief
For a 20% tax payer that’s fine but for higher rate taxpayer its a disaster that will lead to them paying a lot more tax
These rules will not apply to Companies, Companies will continue to claim full relief.
When you sell or give a residential property to your Company you will incur Capital Gains Tax if you make a gain, its for this reason many investors and their advisers believe that they are ‘automatically’ entitled to claim Incorporation Tax Relief, but in many cases Incorporation Tax Relief will NOT be available!
In summary Incorporation Tax Relief allows Sole Traders to postpone/hold over a gain by transferring all their business assets into a limited company in return for Shares.
The key problem area is the Property Investment is generally not considered to be a Trade.
Mrs Ramsey arranged and attended to maintenance issues (drains)
Mrs Ramsey and her son maintained the garages and cleared rubbish
Mrs Ramsey dealt with post
Mrs Ramsey dealt with fire regulation issues
Mrs Ramsey arranged for a fence to be erected
Mrs Ramsey created a flower bed
Shrubs were pruned and leaves swept
The parking area was cleared of weeds
The flag stones were bleached
Communal areas were vacuumed
Security checks were carried out
She took rubbish to tip
She cleaned vacant flats
she helped elderly tenants with utilities
This work equated to at least 20 hours per week and Mrs Ramsey had no other employment.
It is because she did the work herself that her property investment was considered a ‘Business’ and eligible for Incorporation Tax Relief. In summing up the Judge said…
If Mrs Ramsay had employed a Property Management Company or Letting Agent to do the work she would NOT have been able to claim ‘Incorporation Tax Relief’.
Most Buy to Let Landlords with one or two properties are Passive Investors who delegate all the responsibilities to professional letting agents, they will not be doing enough to comprise a business!
2 Commercial Property should be in a Pension Scheme
Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) Schemes and Small Self Administered Schemes (SSAS) can invest in commercial property, no tax on the rental income, no capital gains, you only pay tax when you draw your pension.
You also get tax relief on money paid into your Pension.
3 Claim tax deductible expenses
Claim allowable expenses
Mortgage or Loan Interest (but not capital)
Repairs and maintenance (but not improvements)
Decorating
Gardening
Cleaning
Travel costs to and from your properties for lettings or meetings
Advertising costs
Agents fees
Buildings and contents insurance
Ground Rent
Accountants Fees
Rent insurance (if you claim the income will need to be declared)
Legal fees relating to eviction
If the property is furnished claim for Wear & Tear, you can claim 10% of the rent each year
Claim for repair and advertising expenses incurred in getting the property ready for renting
4 Use a Property Development Company to Save VAT
Property Development is a trade, where as Property Investment isn’t – renting out a residential property is a VAT exempt supply.
If you are planning significant building work, setting up a Development Company or using a building contractor might save VAT.
Your builder may be able to charge you VAT at the reduced rate of 5 per cent if you are converting premises into:
a ‘single household dwelling’
a different number of ‘single household dwellings’
a ‘multiple occupancy dwelling’, such as bed-sits, or
premises intended for use solely for a ‘relevant residential purpose’
As your builder will be VAT registered, they reclaim the VAT they are charged and then charge you VAT at 5%.
If your business is property rental and you do the work yourself, you can’t take advantage of the 5% rate.
If your Development Company is VAT registered you can reclaim all the VAT.
Get your existing business or your property development company to convert the property and then sell it to another company that you own (may be an SPV) will be a VAT Zero Rated transaction. The other company then carries on the rental business.
5 Principle Private Residence Relief and Lettings Relief
Principle Private Residence Relief (PPR) is useful relief that saves you capital gains tax (18% for basic rate tax payers and 28% for higher rates tax payers) on your main residence.
You may also qualify for lettings relief after you have moved out.
6 Give away your Property in Stages
As long as the home you give away is your main home, Capital Gains Tax won’t be payable.
However, if you give away a second home, Capital Gains Tax may be payable if the property has increased in value between when you first owned it and when you gave it away.
If you sell your second home and give the money to your children, the gift won’t be included in your estate for Inheritance Tax purposes, provided you live for 7 years after you make the gift.
It is possible to to gift property in stages.
Your solicitor will draw up the required documents to conveyance a percentage of the property and register the transactions with the Land Registry.
In order to calculate the capital gain you will need to know the acquisition cost and any reliefs such as PPR.
Giving away your property in stages could save you from having to pay capital gains tax.
7 Claim Capital Allowances and Claim Tax Relief on Integral Features
FA2008 introduced a new classification of integral features of a building or structure, expenditure on the provision or replacement of which qualifies for WDAs at the 10% special rate. The new classification applies to qualifying expenditure incurred on or after 1 April 2008 (CT) or 6 April 2008 (IT).
The rules on integral features apply where a person carrying on a qualifying activity incurs expenditure on the provision or replacement of an integral feature for the purposes of that qualifying activity. Each of the following is an integral feature of a building or structure –
an electrical system (including a lighting system),
a cold water system,
a space or water heating system, a powered system of ventilation, air cooling or air purification, and any floor or ceiling comprised in such a system,
a lift, an escalator or a moving walkway,
external solar shading
Only assets that are on the list are integral features for PMA purposes; if an asset is not one of those included in the list, the integral features rules are not in point.
However, Plant and Machinery includes….
other building fixtures, such as shop fittings, kitchen and bathroom fittings
Many businesses have never claimed capital allowances for these items.
8 Consider Joint Ownership
If you own property personally you could double up your tax free Capital Gains Tax Allowance if you switch to owning property jointly with your spouse.
9 Check if you qualify for relief from ATED
Most residential properties (dwellings) are owned directly by individuals. But in some cases a dwelling may be owned by a company, a partnership with a corporate member or other collective investment vehicle. In these circumstances the dwelling is said to be ‘enveloped’ because the ownership sits within a corporate ‘wrapper’ or ‘envelope’.
ATED is a tax payable by companies on high value residential property (a dwelling).
There are reliefs that might lead to you not having to pay any ATED. You can only claim these by completing and sending an ATED return.
A dwelling might get relief from ATED if it is:
let to a third party on a commercial basis and isn’t, at any time, occupied (or available for occupation) by anyone connected with the owner
open to the public for at least 28 days per annum, if part of a property is occupied as a dwelling in connection with running the property as a commercial business open to the public, the whole property is treated as one dwelling and any relief will apply to the whole property
part of a property trading business and isn’t, at any time, occupied (or available for occupation) by anyone connected with the owner
part of a property developers trade where the dwelling is acquired as part of a property development business the property was purchased with the intention to re-develop and sell it on and isn’t, at any time, occupied (or available for occupation) by anyone connected with the owner
for the use of employees of the company, for the company’s commercial business and where the employee does not have an interest (directly or indirectly) in the company of more than 10%, the employee’s duties must not include services for any present or future occupation of the property by someone connected with the company, the relief is also available where a partner in a partnership does not have an interest of more than 10% in the partnership
a farmhouse, if it is occupied by a qualifying farm worker who farms the associated farmland, a former long-serving farm worker or their surviving spouse or civil partner
a dwelling acquired by a financial institution in the course of lending
owned by a provider of social housing
10 Take dividends this tax year
When you take dividends has never been more critical due to changes in the Summer Budget 2015, so if you have distributable reserves you might want to take more dividends this tax year, try our Dividend Calculator to see how much difference it could make.
Dividend tax rates before April 2016
Tax band
Effective dividend tax rate
Basic rate (20%) (and non-taxpayers)
0%
Higher rate (40%)
25%
Additional rate (45%)
30.56%
This will change from April 2016, see the table below
Dividend tax rates after April 2016
Tax band
Effective dividend tax rate
Tax Free £5,000
0%
Basic Rate Tax Payers (20%)
7.5%
Higher Rate Tax Payers (40%)
32.5%
Additional Rate Tax Payers (45%)
38.1%
The new rules are easier to follow, the 10% tax credit in the current rules is hard for most people to follow.
While these rates remain below the main rates of income tax, those who receive significant dividend income – for example due to very large shareholdings (typically more than £140,000) or as a result of receiving significant dividends through a closed company – will pay more.
When you take dividends has never been more critical due to changes in the Summer Budget 2015, so if you have distributable reserves you might want to take more dividends this tax year, try the Dividend Calculator above to see how much difference it could make.
Dividend tax rates before April 2016
Tax band
Effective dividend tax rate
Basic rate (20%) (and non-taxpayers)
0%
Higher rate (40%)
25%
Additional rate (45%)
30.56%
This will change from April 2016, see the table below
Dividend tax rates after April 2016
Tax band
Effective dividend tax rate
Tax Free £5,000
0%
Basic Rate Tax Payers (20%)
7.5%
Higher Rate Tax Payers (40%)
32.5%
Additional Rate Tax Payers (45%)
38.1%
The new rules are easier to follow, the 10% tax credit in the current rules is hard for most people to follow.
While these rates remain below the main rates of income tax, those who receive significant dividend income – for example due to very large shareholdings (typically more than £140,000) or as a result of receiving significant dividends through a closed company – will pay more.
