Capital gains tax has climbed back up the list of landlords’ concerns

There haven’t been any government announcements. No Budget has proposed an increase. Yet conversations about higher CGT seem to be everywhere. So what’s changed?

Part of the answer may lie in the wider political conversation. Since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister, he has repeatedly argued that wealth and assets should play a bigger role in funding public services, while refusing to rule out further tax reform.

Since becoming Labour leader/Prime Minister, he has repeatedly talked about shifting taxation away from earnings and towards wealth and assets. He has not announced a CGT rise, but he has:

• refused to rule out a wealth tax
• repeated that assets are undertaxed compared with labour
• left the door open to wider tax reform

At the same time, economists, tax advisers and property commentators have all begun debating whether Capital Gains Tax could eventually form part of that discussion.

None of this confirms that change is coming, but it may help explain why answers to the Property118 Landlord Sentiment Survey reports that Capital Gains Tax is one of top priorities driving landlords towards leaving the PRS.

It’s the end of a golden era for many landlords, so the key they face now is how to squeeze the most money out of the equity in their portfolio. Auctions cost too much, estate agents take too long. So where do landlords turn, fast?

The Landlord Sales Agency stands out as the best choice to sell tenanted properties or portfolios with more expertise and less involvement: portfolio exit specialists with over 20 years of experience helping landlords sell properties with or without tenants, in any condition.

Rather than paying estate agency commission, legal fees or funding lengthy void periods and months of holding costs, landlords use part of the equity already tied up in the property to fund the sale itself, securing a faster, more convenient exit with no fees or commission to pay.

We do more than other estate agents or auctions to provide additional information for investors, and they project manage the entire task from listing to completion, chasing progress throughout and solving problems to ensure 95%+ of agreed sales complete as fast as possible while sellers sit back and relax.

We have a database of more than 30,000 active buyers including cash buyers, corporate investors and owner occupiers – in addition to the buyers we find on property portals like RightMove and Zoopla or via our local agents.

We have an extensive network of industry professionals we regularly use to find bespoke solutions to any puzzle – inc helping tenants raise a deposit using the equity tied into a property at no additional expense to the seller.

A significant portion of the properties we sell never even reach the open market – perfect for landlords looking for ultimate convenience and/or a more discreet investor to investor sale.

A landlord came to us with a portfolio carrying a vacant possession value of £1.6 million. Instead of treating the equity tied up in the properties as something to preserve at all costs, he chose to deploy a small proportion of it as a strategic tool to achieve a faster, simpler exit. We secured a buyer for £1.4 million within 27 days, with completion following once the necessary compliance work had been finished. In return, he avoided:

• Estate agency fees and commission.
• The cost and disruption of obtaining vacant possession across the portfolio.
• Multiple refurbishments to prepare properties for sale.
• Months or even years of void periods, mortgage payments and holding costs.
• Selling dozens of properties individually with separate negotiations, viewings and legal transactions.
• The uncertainty of waiting for buyers on each individual property.
• The stress of managing the entire process himself.

By using equity to save costs, the amount sellers walk away from the sale is very similar to a high street vacant possession route that takes much longer to complete. The big difference is in the time, effort and stress it takes them to get there.

Whether or not Capital Gains Tax changes ever happen, many landlords are now asking a different question: if they’re already planning to sell within the next few years, is there any real advantage in waiting to find out?

Especially with so many definite plans in the pipeline for the end of 2026 and 2027 including Making Tax Digital, the Private Rented Sector Database and Ombudsman scheme, the 2% tax rise already scheduled for property income, the revised Housing Health and Safety System (HHSRS) and minimum EPC standards on the horizon.

September is traditionally one of the busiest times of the year for property sales, with investors returning from the summer holidays looking to complete purchases before the end of the year. For landlords who have already decided that one or more properties no longer fit their long-term plans, it could be the ideal opportunity to act while demand is strong.

All without the cost, delay and uncertainty of eviction, with rent continuing to offset ownership costs for the majority of the sale.

Contact Landlord Sales Agency today and you could be enjoying the profits from the sale before your possession claim has even reached court.