Treat Landlords more like Farmers?

Treat Landlords more like Farmers?

9:32 AM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago 12

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With all the recent fuss about farmers and the changes in inheritance tax rules for them, something struck me and I wonder what thoughts other members have.

I raise this partly in jest as IN NO WAY would these thoughts be entertained owing to the low opinion had of landlords.

So, what other business has high assets and low cash (apart from a necessary contingency fund) and often quite a low income? Small portfolio landlords like myself can’t afford to get our properties managed so we are on call 24/7 though we are not out milking cows at dawn but sometimes I think that animals would be easier to manage than tenants.

When we reach a certain age we start thinking about the future of our business. If we don’t transfer the assets 7 years before we die there will be a lot of inheritance tax for our heirs to pay. This will mean they will probably have to sell up all or most of the portfolio (if they even want to carry on in this business, but that’s another matter.) No new investors are interested in buying these properties.

So properties are lost to the private rental sector at a time when they are vital for many reasons as we all know.

This begs the question – farmers are talking about farms lost to the agricultural worth of the country and possible food insecurity. What about housing insecurity? Which is the greatest threat to a good life – importing more food or having a roof over your head?

Shouldn’t landlords also be given a similarly ‘good deal’ when it comes to inheritance tax in order to maintain a thriving rental sector for years to come?

Oh, sorry, I am living in cloud cuckoo land but I thought I’d put it out there.

Helen


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Jason

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9:30 AM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

The whole UK tax system needs major reform. All these budgets ever do it just move thresholds around creating winners and losers across multiple sectors year on year. The UK really needs to look at itself as a county and decide what it really wants to become, then structure an effective tax system around those goals. Now would have been the best time to have done so but we just simply don’t have (and likely will never have) the right political party.

GlanACC

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9:56 AM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

Actually this is a good point, when i croak it my kids will have to sell one or two properties to pay the IHT bill.

Mandy Bloedow

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10:21 AM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

I was thinking the exact same thing, all we get is penalised year after year 🙁

Downsize Government

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10:34 AM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

The government needs a 1 year amnesty on CGT and stamp duty. To allow everyone to reposition their assets. These taxes lock people into owning assets they wish were in someone else's hands. This causes a lot of deadloss for the economy.

Being able to transfer these assets without these taxes would solve some of the IHT problem.
IHT is completely unnecessary, new Zealand doesn't have it and doesn't miss it.

Yvonne Francis

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10:48 AM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

Helen: I've had the same thoughts. After all landlords run an essential business like farmers, but no one has suggested we can leave on death our properties tax free to our inheritors. While I have some sympathy with the
farmers, I'm not totally with them, because of my situation. My inheritors will have to sell a considerable amount. If you try and solve this situation you are caught every way around.  

Adele Gibbons

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14:20 PM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

The next thing they will take off of us, especially landlords, will be the 7 year gift provision.
I'm actually really surprised they haven't done so.

GlanACC

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14:45 PM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

Reply to the comment left by Adele Gibbons at 26/11/2024 - 14:20They can only do that if it applies to everyone, there was talk of changing it to 10 years but I think 7 years is set in stone.

Reeves has already stated she will not come back for more tax and if she did it would be a Truss moment and everything would collapse

JamesB

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17:55 PM, 26th November 2024, About 7 days ago

Reply to the comment left by Downsize Government at 26/11/2024 - 10:34
I agree about being stuck in assets you don't want and not being able to adjust, which is silly. I bought quite a few of my houses when I was a boy ( ie early to mid 20s). At that point I hadn't got married or had children and I viewed houses very differently to the way I do now as a family man. However, I am pretty much stuck with what I have, because to change even one single £650k house to an identical value one that would work better for letting would cost around £175k in CGT and stamp. Basically way too much.
If stamp worked more like VAT and if rollover relief was available I would be very proactive in selling and buying with all the other boosts to the economy this would then create. Instead I plod on, gradually exiting, whilst trying to work out what to do to minimise IHT one day.

Peter Merrick

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22:14 PM, 1st December 2024, About A day ago

Reply to the comment left by JamesB at 26/11/2024 - 17:55Take out as much mortgage as you can at least 7 years before death, and give the capital thus raised to your descendants.
They will then only have to pay IHT on the equity that is left as CGT is nullified by death.

Paul Essex

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9:16 AM, 2nd December 2024, About 21 hours ago

I think anyone who believes that they won't come back for more tax next year or any of their other promises is fooling themselves.
Apart from the national insurance one, the rest are avoidable to some extent as such they will only raise a fraction of the amount that they were dreaming of.
PS if anyone believes that the landlord cost from the RRB will be the quoted 12 pounds, I have some magic beans available at unbelievable prices.

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