Forces Entitlement

derbyjo

Can anyone help me please. I have been told that due to the nature of the job, people within the Forces are entitled to buy a property and rent it out until the job allows them to live in it, without paying for BTL privileges. Is this true, or an urban myth? I have tried searching for the answer but come up with a blank, which suggests it may be a myth..

silvercar

"without paying for BTL privileges"

what actually this means AFAIK is that you have no CGT liability when you sell the property. Normally you have to live in a property as you Principal Private Residence in order to be exempt from CGT (a tax on the gain in the property's value); as you can't live in the house because you are serving our country, you are still allowed to consider it as if it was your PPR.

All mortgage restrictions and insurance requirements would still need to be met. You could probably get a residential mortgage and ask for "consent to lease" rather than a BTL mortgage. You would need to tell the building insurer that the property is tenanted.

silvercar

"without paying for BTL privileges"

what actually this means AFAIK is that you have no CGT liability when you sell the property. Normally you have to live in a property as you Principal Private Residence in order to be exempt from CGT (a tax on the gain in the property's value); as you can't live in the house because you are serving our country, you are still allowed to consider it as if it was your PPR.

All mortgage restrictions and insurance requirements would still need to be met. You could probably get a residential mortgage and ask for "consent to lease" rather than a BTL mortgage. You would need to tell the building insurer that the property is tenanted.

derbyjo

So, presumably I would have to still seek permission to rent out the property whilst unable to live in it, and could get refused, so maybe it is better to just do the buy to let, but then I suppose that I could not claim it was my main residence as I cannot live in it ever with a buy to let mortgage.. Problems problems! There doesn't seem to be much difference in the rates nowadays for BTL or residential mortgages anyway. Thanks for the swift response though.