Landlords can breathe a sigh of relief following the government’s Budget, as the Chancellor refrained from introducing any further tax changes on landlords.
It’s something the government has frequently imposed in recent Budgets, notably including a reduction in the tax relief that they can claim and a three per cent stamp duty surcharge.
The only explicit mention of landlords in Philip Hammond’s Budget speech referred to the launch of a consultation into encouraging landlords to offer longer-term tenancies.
He said: “We will launch a consultation on barriers to longer tenancies in the private rented sector, and how we might encourage landlords to offer them to those tenants who want the extra security.”
Industry experts are supportive of longer tenancies, especially if they’re combined with attractive tax perks – such as tax relief for those landlords offering such deals.
This would be a reversal in current policy, where the tax relief claimed by landlords is being reduced (and replaced with a 20 per cent tax credit) over the four years to 2020.
David Cox, chief executive of ARLA Propertymark – the trade body for the lettings industry – welcomed the consultation on longer tenancies, saying: “The government needs to work towards one over-reaching strategy and get this right, rather than make individual big populist announcements.”
The Chancellor chose to focus on first-time buyers in his speech, abolishing stamp duty on the homes they buy, up to the value of £300,000.
The move is aimed at helping young people who are struggling to get onto the property ladder, and will also apply to homes worth up to half a million pounds in wealthier areas such as London. It means they will only face charges on the £200,000 difference.
The government has also promised to do whatever it takes to get more homes built, including cracking down on ‘land-banking’ and underwriting loans to small house builders.
Despite landlords featuring less than in recent years, there were still several points of note.
Check out our quick breakdown of the announcements that could most affect landlords.
Over 200,000 UK landlord policies, a 9/10 customer rating and claims handled by an award-winning team. Looking to switch or start a new policy? Run a quick landlord insurance quote today.
Start your quoteWe create this content for general information purposes and it should not be taken as advice. Always take professional advice. Read our full disclaimer
Keep up to date with Simply Business. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter and follow us on social media.
Subscribe to our newsletter6th Floor99 Gresham StreetLondonEC2V 7NG
Sol House29 St Katherine's StreetNorthamptonNN1 2QZ
© Copyright 2021 Simply Business. All Rights Reserved. Simply Business is a trading name of Xbridge Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Financial Services Registration No: 313348). Xbridge Limited (No: 3967717) has its registered office at 6th Floor, 99 Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7NG.