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TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Government to respond to petition calling for reform of 'disastrous' BTL tax changes

An online petition which calls on the government to reintroduce full buy-to-let mortgage interest tax relief and abolish the 3% stamp duty surcharge has passed the 10,000-signature mark.

This means that the petition - launched on May 14 by Mark Homer - now requires an official response from the government.

As of Saturday afternoon, the petition - which you can see here - had received 11,261 signatures.

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If it reaches 100,000 signatures before November 14, it will be considered for a debate in Parliament. 

In April 2016, the government introduced a controversial 3% stamp duty surcharge on the purchase of additional or second homes. A year later, last April, it began the process of reducing the interest tax relief that buy-to-let landlords can claim on their mortgages to the basic rate of income tax. 

 

The wording of the petition claims that the measures are driving landlords away from the rental sector which is 'increasing homelessness' as tenants are faced with 'less choice' and 'higher rents'.

"It is time to review the tax changes on buy-to-let landlords. It’s clear that the availability of rental property has decreased and rents have risen markedly," it says.

"We call for policy change to end these disastrous tax policies which cause such profound suffering."

Back in 2016, Cherie Blair led a failed attempt to seek a Judicial Review of the changes to buy-to-let mortgage interest tax relief.

The case - which was brought by landlords Steve Bolton and Chris Cooper - challenged that Section 24 of the Finance (No 2) Act 2015 discriminated against individual landlords.

*Graham Norwood is on annual leave until May 31. Conor Shilling will be undertaking editorial duties in his absence. Please direct any press enquiries to press@lettingagenttoday.co.uk.

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    Hardly disastrous. The system needs to change and we should see past immediate self-interest.

    "I do not think that the man who makes money by unearned increment in land is morally worse than anyone else who gathers his profit where he finds it in this hard world under the law and according to common usage. It is not the individual I attack; it is the system." -W Churchill

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    This bill in itself is ridiculous, discriminating small investors and killing private rental market which will cause homelessness in the coming future.

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    Hopefully, small investors will invest in something else in the future - something productive. We need to free up houses for buyers and push house prices down.

     
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    If the govt does reply, itll be the usual half-truth dross about ‘levelling the playing field’ and ‘only affecting a small number of landlords’ (or 425,000 as it actually is).

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