Fast-approaching deadline for Interest Only BTL mortgages.

To ensure I don’t neglect my focus on this very useful forum discipline, I am popping by to update my signature with £500 op. Would have been more, but one of the tenants hasn’t paid his rent again and is also not responding to requests to let plumber in to check out leak coming from his flat. Sigh.

Hi greent, landlording certainly can be a hassle, especially when tenants occasionally go MIA. However, as of Friday, tenant is up-to-date on payments. He did confirm that the leak was in fact coming from a different flat and that it had already been repaired which has been confirmed. Relieved I didn’t incur any costs for this.

Tenant lodged late payment at 5pm on Friday, the same instant I received proceeds from an online sale. Both amounts transferred as op by about 5:05 - a good way to end to the week although I do find that £249 at the end of my mortgage balance somewhat irksome in a TT kind of way. Best get on the case! Good luck with your op push at the end of this year!

My accountant sent my draft tax calculations through. As I have earned more at work and received more rent this year, the taxman would like me to spread the payments and pay 2/3 of income tax (it’s a very big number!) in January (referred to as Payment on Account) and the remaining third in July! This is a first and therefore, unexpected. Alongside this, I will be due to pay PAYE each quarter and a whopping great Corporation tax bill in August. I have calculated I now pay more tax than my previous boss earns gross!

Logically, I know that I should be grateful I’m taxed so much as it indicates a good income. But, it also points to the new punitive taxes on B2L landlords which will ultimately leave this as a viable alternative only for those landlords with no mortgages on their properties. This will result in less opportunity for ordinary folk to have B2L, many of whom just want to have a property to leave to their children (IMO). Instead the market will be left to big investors, leaving fewer options for tenants.

Having been aghast at the amount of tax due in January, it has at least prompted me to suggest to my accountant that I no longer pay tax in the U.K. on my Euroland property, rather I pay the taxes in Euroland instead which will be less punitive and should satisfy both taxmen. Currently, there is an Agreement between both countries that to pay all taxes in one of the countries is acceptable (not clear on the detail though). If my Accountant agrees this is feasible, I will push on to get B2L1 mortgage to sub £90k, which would be a good result for this year. If it is feasible, I will be curious why he didn’t suggest it as he charges me £915 pa.

It has also prompted me to consider investing money in the property improvements next year to reduce tax. Otherwise, B2L just isn’t viable, I think!

Therefore, op on B2L1 will likely come to a halt for the foreseeable. In the meantime:

My contract expires in December. I have pushed for an increase to market rate, buoyed after calculating that my recruitment agent earns £15k pa from my contract. Even my recruitment agent admitted they made a lot from me! I gave a strong hint that that I would get a job elsewhere in the New Year if he didn’t secure close to market rate and not to cut off his nose despite his face.

I also confirmed that I will not fall into new IR35 regulations coming in in April 2019 as these only apply to contractors in the public sector. However, I believe there may be plans to introduce IR35 regulations for contractors in private sector from April 2020.

I plan to take few holidays as possible next year to maximise op. It will be interesting if, next year I have been able to resist temptation!

I queried the amount I spend on petrol each week. I drive a little (but stylish!) 3 yo car with a 1.2L engine, commute 16 miles each way in start/stop traffic. Colleague with 12 yo people carrier and similar commute spends £65 every three weeks. Since Thursday I have switched off the start/stop functionality in my car which was supposed to save me £200 pa in petrol, but I suspect has cost me £250 extra pa. I will watch fuel consumption over next week and confirm. Colleague said the start/stop functionality is effective on larger engines, not on smaller ones. Curious!

I have signed up for 5 marshalling days next year and volunteered with another which is closer.

Try now only to purchase items through FB Marketplace or a Chinese site called Wish, which my brother recommended. The savings are remarkable.