UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi.
First time landlord and first time preparing self assessment .
I bought a brand new house and it was not rented for the first 2 months I owned it.
But obviously I had to pay council tax for those 2 months.
Is this taxable expense ?
Thanks.

Yeah, should be fine. I take it nobody was living there at the time?

It's definitely allowable. You treat the expense as being incurred on the first day of the first tenancy, same as any other setup costs.

Congrats on becoming a landlord. Regarding the council tax you paid for the first 2 months when your property wasn't rented out, it's a common question among new landlords.

In general, council tax paid on a rental property while it's vacant is considered a legitimate expense for tax purposes. You should be able to include these council tax payments as allowable expenses when you prepare your self-assessment for the rental income.

It's always a good idea to keep records of these expenses and any other costs related to preparing the property for rental.