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Are these allowable landlord expenses?

My tenant has asked for new curtains before they move in (the existing curtains are a bit grubby). Im happy to buy new curtains, but would this be an allowable expense to offset against tax?

Also, Ive noticed there is some damp in the base of the chimney in the lounge. I suspect this is because some pointing is needed as there are weeds growing out of the chimney above the roof line! Would this be considered a capital expense?

Thanks
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Comments

  • My view:

    Curtains - replacement provided that they are not better than what you had.

    Damp - this is maintenance unless you are improving the property. If the cause of the damp is the weeds, then this is pretty clearly maintenance. If its more inherent in the property then there could be an argument that its a capital expense
  • dllive
    dllive Posts: 1,211
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    Hmmm, there are 2 damp issues which - I *think* by looking at the outside of the property - is coming from lack of pointing on chimney stack and 2 patches of cracked render. Maybe I could claim a portion of that?
    Is there anyone that can give me a definitive answer? (IE: Can I contact HMRC and ask them?)
  • Both damp issues sound like maintenance not improvement.
  • dllive
    dllive Posts: 1,211
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    Thanks. This sounds promising. Good news is its tax deductible... bad news is it will be expensive. (I guess about £1k, which is just less than 2 months rental income).
  • agrinnall
    agrinnall Posts: 23,344
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    dllive wrote: »
    Is there anyone that can give me a definitive answer?


    Does it really matter? I hope for the sake of your tenants and to keep your property in good order you are going to fix the damp anyway, so why not just claim it on your next return, and HMRC will either allow it or not.
  • dllive
    dllive Posts: 1,211
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    agrinnall wrote: »
    Does it really matter? I hope for the sake of your tenants and to keep your property in good order you are going to fix the damp anyway, so why not just claim it on your next return, and HMRC will either allow it or not.

    Yes, I will fix the damp issue regardless. My question is whether I can add this as an expense on my self assessment, either wholly or proportionally. I dont want to trigger an investigation or even attract attention from HMRC when Im legitimately trying to do the right thing.
  • silvercar
    silvercar Posts: 46,861
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    dllive wrote: »
    Yes, I will fix the damp issue regardless. My question is whether I can add this as an expense on my self assessment, either wholly or proportionally. I dont want to trigger an investigation or even attract attention from HMRC when Im legitimately trying to do the right thing.

    You only enter a total expenses figure on your tax return; there are a couple of sub categories (from memory insurance, interest and fees). Otherwise it is just general expenses - in there will be all sorts of things without any individual identification.

    You obviously need to justify it if you are inspected, not no-one wastes time going through each item. I would say it is clearly maintenance.
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  • pramsay13
    pramsay13 Posts: 1,932
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    Other common types of expenses you can deduct if you pay for them yourself are:

    general maintenance and repairs to the property, but not improvements (such as replacing a laminate kitchen worktop with a granite worktop)
    from https://www.gov.uk/guidance/income-tax-when-you-rent-out-a-property-working-out-your-rental-income

    You have described maintenance issues, nothing about your description sounds like capital improvement.
  • ProDave
    ProDave Posts: 3,675
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    Interestingly on my last tax return I had the option of claiming actual allowable expenses, OR ticking a box to claim a flat rate of £1000

    Since my actual expenses were less than £1000, I chose the £1000 option.

    (I don't have any form of mortgage so my expenses are only insurance and maintenance)

    Interestingly as this property is jointly owned, we each declare half the income so we each had a £1000 box to tick. Happy days.

    I don't seem to see much discussion of this flat rate £1000 option so can only assume most landlords expenses are > £1000?
  • AlexMac
    AlexMac Posts: 2,973
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    Even without consulting the myriad advice on the HMRC site, I'm 100% sure it's routine maintenence, not Capital, thus ofsettable.

    And as regards your self assessment return; given that the taxperson only asks for summary numbers, they won't know, nor care about the detail. I only have to fill in a five-line summary analysis of expenditure; five numbers, a bit on loan interest and a total income...

    And as for triggering an investigation, I've been filling in returns for over 20 years as a small-time amateur landlord, and there has never been a hint of a question or audit; even when my (impeccably honest) return of allowable expenses has varied from the previous year by several grand. So chill.
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