Tag Archives: real estate
UK taxman cracks down on property tax avoidance schemes
The UK taxman has collected £301.8 million in unpaid property tax due to what is described as an aggressive clampdown on stamp duty avoidance. HMRC’s new Counter Avoidance Directorate collected the amount in the last year as part of a policy to crackdown on Stamp Duty and Land Tax (SDLT) avoidance schemes. According to private client law firm Collyer Bristow, the data which was provided to them by HMRC, shows that the policy has been a success. The Counter Avoidance Directorate was first established in April 2014 in order to bring together HMRC’s work on marketed tax avoidance schemes and policy work on avoidance. ‘The Government’s aggressive clamp down on SDLT avoidance schemes over the last few years is now bearing fruit. The high returns from compliance investigations mean that this area is likely to remain under the spotlight for some time to come,’ said James Badcock, partner at Collyer Bristow. He pointed out that house prices have soared in recent years- particularly in London and the South East- which means many taxpayers face a substantial SDLT bill on their purchase. ‘Avoidance schemes were being used to reduce SDLT on what for London are relatively modest properties in the £1 million region as well as very high value properties. As well as the Government closing down schemes with legislation, HMRC has tackled previous planning through the disclosure regime, better resourced investigations and litigation,’ he explained. He also pointed out that whilst in many cases there is likely to be a legal justification for transactions which allowed an SDLT liability to be avoided, HMRC can be expected to challenge the schemes and anyone who is concerned at all should now seek advice. ‘Individuals who decided to engage in the planning because it seemed so easy at the time may not have the stomach for the fight once faced with an HMRC challenge This can be expensive but another critical factor is a climate in which engaging in abusive tax avoidance can cause reputational damage to those in the public eye,’ he added. Collyer Bristow highlights that changes to the rates of SDLT were introduced in last year’s Autumn Statement. The new rules included the introduction of a graduated rate moving away from the sharp increases resulting from a property just exceeding a threshold which could seem unreasonable. The change means anyone purchasing a house for less than £937,000 will see SDLT cut or remain the same whilst those buying the most expensive properties are likely to face a higher bill. Continue reading
New tax free savings vehicles launched for first time UK buyers
Would be first time buyers in the UK can now take advantage of a new financial product that allows them to save for a deposit on a home tax free. The government’s Help to Buy ISA launched today and means that people can save £200 each month, up to a maximum of £12,000, and the government will provide a 25% bonus on the interest and contributions, up to a maximum of £3,000, when the saver purchases a property. According to Mark Hayward, managing director of the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA), it will provide a boost to first time buyers hoping to make the climb onto the property ladder. ‘It seems as though first time buyers are at the top of the government’s agenda following the further helpful initiatives announced during last week’s Autumn Statement which means that we might finally begin to see first time buyers cutting through the market. But he pointed out that although the Help to Buy ISA is a starting point for first time buyers and it will help them on the way to raising a deposit, there’s another major reason why they are feeling pushed out of the market and that is not enough homes to buy. ‘This is the lack of housing, specifically affordable housing available to all house buyers whether that be first time buyers, all the way to last time buyers. In order to help first time buyers find their feet in the market in the long term, the issue of supply needs to be addressed,’ explained Hayward. ‘Chancellor George Osborne’s announcement that he’ll be building 200,000 new starter homes is a good place to start, but until the wheels are put into motion, we just won’t see a substantial change for first time buyers,’ he added. Dave Bexon, Group sales and marketing director for Redrow Homes, welcomed the launch as raising a deposit is regularly cited as one of the biggest barriers to home ownership for young people. ‘This pioneering scheme should encourage a generation of renters to save for a down payment on a home, with the knowledge that the hard earned money they set aside will be topped up with a contribution from the Government,’ he said. ‘We're confident this assistance will encourage more would be home owners into the market which, longer term, is also key to helping to stimulate movement at all levels of the market,’ he added. He also pointed out that the existing Help to Buy equity loans continue to provide a valuable boost to purchasers of new build homes, enabling people to buy with just a 5% deposit with an equity loan of 20% from the Government, which is interest free for five years. Mortgage advisor Andrew Mannion, of RSC New Homes, one of several mortgage experts who offer advice to Redrow purchasers, also welcomed the introduction. ‘We feel that this scheme will be useful as it will boost a customer's deposit which,… Continue reading
Report identifies 18 areas in the UK with new home development opportunities
There are 18 areas in the UK where economic fundamentals suggest there are good opportunities for developers at a time when the government wants to build more homes than ever. An analysis from international real estate firm Knight Frank and planning consultancy Barton Willmore names them as Leeds, Manchester, York, Durham, Birmingham, Nottingham, Warwick, Leicester, Brentwood, South Cambridgeshire, Bristol, Bath and North East Somerset, Exeter, Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, Guildford, Reigate and Banstead and Tunbridge Wells. Factors examined included economic growth, employment growth, stock to sales ratios, affordability and liveability. These rankings were then placed alongside the latest conditions in the local planning environment as well as local knowledge, to highlight areas which suggest there is the possibility for outperformance for developers, not only in terms of pricing but also market absorption. Justin Gaze, joint head of residential development at Knight Frank, said developer interest is now much wider than just London. ‘Increasingly, our clients are looking at regional cities and districts for future potential and the report demonstrates from an economic and planning perspective where these development opportunities are likely to be,’ he explained. According to Iain Painting, planning partner at Barton Willmore, these opportunity areas are aligned with the increased emphasis on urbanisation, focusing on many of England’s key cities, but also demonstrate that development opportunities are not purely based in the South East. In the North of England it is Manchester and Leeds that are expected to be among the areas which will experience the strongest rates of household growth over the next 10 years, while York scores particularly highly on liveability rankings. The report suggests that the green belt will pose constraints for developers in and around Durham and York but at the same time, there is a need for more site identification, as these two areas do not yet have a five year land supply. York boasts policies to boost housing supply as it has been identified as one of the first Housing Zones in England. Meanwhile, Leeds plays host to an Enterprise Zone and the North East Combined Authority, of which Durham is one of the constituent boroughs, has also bid for 175 hectares of Enterprise Zone over 10 sites. The report points out that this new combined authority has just been granted extended powers over housing. Of the four Development Opportunity areas, only Leeds has an approved local plan and as policymakers push ahead with the ‘Northern Powerhouse’, especially the transport infrastructure to support this, the opportunities in the North of England will widen, it adds. The report explains that not only does Birmingham have an Enterprise Zone, but also a planning department committed to large scale regeneration of many parts of the city. Nottingham is also an Enterprise Zone area and has a local plan and five year land supply in place. ‘However, our data shows that the current pipeline supply of schemes in this local authority may fall short of household growth projections,’ the… Continue reading
