Being a landlord isn’t free – it comes with responsibilities and expenses so that you can maintain your Cheltenham rental property and give your tenants a comfortable, safe place to live.
Thankfully, you can claim some of your costs back as allowable expenses, reducing your income tax bill quite a bit.
HMRC allows many expenses – some might surprise you
You can deduct some of the expenses from your rental income tax liability if they’re caused exclusively by you renting out a property.
You can’t include personal costs, however. So, if for example you use the same mobile phone for personal and business purposes, you can only claim for the calls made for your business.
Here are the 21 tax expenses you can claim
Replacing broken or faulty windows
If you need to replace draughty or leaking windows, you can claim this expense back. If the windows are broken by accident, you can still claim but if your tenant breaks them, it’s their responsibility to fix them.
Fixing roof tiles and guttering
Replacing or fixing rooftiles and guttering is an allowable expense – make sure you keep your invoices and receipts safe, just in case HMRC asks to see them.
Redoing the bathroom
As long as it’s like for like in terms of quality and price, you can claim back for replacing showers, baths, sinks, cupboards and toilets.
Bear in mind that if you decide to upgrade the bathroom, you’ll only be able to deduct as much money as you would if you’d paid a like-for-like amount. If your new bathroom cost twice as much as the old one, you can only claim half the value.
Replacing or fixing the boiler
Boiler repairs and like-for-like replacements are also allowable expenses.
Dealing with water or gas leaks
These repairs are allowable expenses, as are electrical repairs at your rental.
Repointing your brickwork
Repointing or repairing brickwork is an allowable expense. You can also claim for stone cleaning expenses – even if you hire machinery and do it yourself, you can still claim the hire costs.
Treating damp in your property
Whichever type of damp you’re dealing with, you can claim the expenses back.
Redecorating expenses
It’s recommended that you redecorate your Cheltenham rental at least every five years. You might do it in between tenancies as well, or after excessive wear and tear. As long as your redecorating efforts are reasonable, you can claim the expenses back.
Ground rent and service charges
This one might surprise you, but in a good way! With some service charges being up to £2,000, you’ll be glad you can claim them back.
Your landlord insurance
Landlord insurance is a bit more expensive than regular home insurance, so it’s good news that you can claim some of the costs back. If you need a valuation for an insurance quote, you can claim that too.
The utility bills
If you have to pay water, gas and electricity bills when the property is vacant, you can claim these costs back.
The council tax
It’s usually the tenant who pays the council tax, but sometimes it’ll be you and when it is, make sure you include it in your tax return.
Gardening expenses
If you employ a gardener or if you buy your tenants a new spade so they can get busy, you can claim the costs back. The same goes for end-of-tenancy cleanings.
Your letting agent fees
Using a letting agent usually means you’ll pay between 10% and 20% of your rental income. You can claim this back too, as well as any tenant-finding fees.
Some of your legal fees
Any legal expenses you incur during your first let, or if you let the property to particular tenants for more than a year, are not allowable. For lets of less than a year you can claim legal expenses and you can claim back for the fees involved in renewing leases.
You can also claim back the costs of evicting tenants, as long as you’re planning to relet the property.
Your accountancy fees
If you get tax advice from an accountant, you can put this down on your return, too.
Your property-related phone calls
There can be lots of phone calls involved when you’re renting, so you can claim back the calls you make for your rental business (not your personal calls).
Any subscriptions to landlord associations or unions
Another surprising one here! If you join an association and pay subscriptions, you can claim these expenses back.
Your advertising costs
Online or offline, for example, in a local newspaper, your advertising costs are deductible.
Your vehicle and fuel costs
You can claim back the rental-related costs of driving to and fro, as well as any parking expenses involved. If you get a parking ticket, however, that’s for you to deal with!
The costs of disposing of old furniture or appliances
If you pay someone to collect old furniture, white goods or similar, you can claim this back too.
