UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi all

First time (and accidental) landlord so looking for some advice on my first tax return.
Expenses incurred from December 23 to March 24, greatly exceeding the first month's rent received in March 24 so I understand I can carry the loss forward.
Reading the guidance on HMRC's pages, they talk about repairs Vs improvements, and whether I lived there prior to the tenancy starting.
The property was gifted to me by my parents, work was done to prepare it for renting whilst it was empty.
Technically I did live there previously but not for many years so I think I can ignore that part of the guidance and treat it as if I had purchased a property normally and spent time/money getting it ready to let?
Not sure where I stand on things like a new carpet (my parents took their fitted wardrobes out leaving part of the floor uncarpeted) - is that a repair or an improvement, given that it wouldn't have been acceptable to let in that condition?
Thanks in advance for any advice

You're right about the living there thing. It's to stop people from living somewhere and then decide to let it out but spend money they benefit from (albeit sometimes temporarily). Growing up there isn't relevant.

"Improvements" are usually synonyms for capital items—when you repair or replace something, there's usually an element of improvement! But a new kitchen would be something different than a "repair".

There are specific rules for furnishings (including carpets), which means you can only claim for replacements, not for the initial provision.
So, if you were replacing the carpet with one that was newer or bigger, that's fine, but a completely new carpet can't be claimed for.

Hi there,

I struggle to distinguish so wanted to double check this, although my assumption is it's a capital cost.

After buying the property but before it went on rent, I had work done on the ceilings. This was because in the survey report it said this:

"We also note that the majority of ceilings around the subject property are fitted with
polystyrene tile finishes and these pose a fire risk and will require to be urgently replaced
and upgraded to a more modern plasterboard finish."

And i was told by ppl that from an insurance standpoint I had to replace it too. So I had someone remove them all and do new plastering and finish.

It's not a like for like replacement so I think it's a capital expense but it was a necessary one related to the condition so could it be non-capital?

Haroon

You could argue it either way, but I'd treat that as a maintenance expense rather than capital, as it's unlikely to have made any material difference to the value of the property.