Accountants for landlords and property investors

We are accountants for landlords across the UK, from a single buy-to-let to large portfolios, and a firm of Chartered Certified Accountants and Chartered Tax Advisers. Landlord taxation has changed sharply since 2017: mortgage interest relief is restricted, Making Tax Digital quarterly reporting is now live, property income tax rates rise from April 2027, and the furnished holiday lettings regime has gone. This page sets out what those rules mean for you and how we help.

What tax do landlords pay on rental income?

If you own property personally, your rental profit is taxed with your other income at 20%, 40% or 45% (Scottish taxpayers pay the Scottish rates). Since the Section 24 rules were fully phased in, mortgage interest is no longer deductible from rental profit for individuals. Instead you get a basic-rate tax reduction worth 20% of the interest (section 272A and sections 274A to 274C ITTOIA 2005), which means higher-rate taxpayers pay materially more than they would have done under the old rules.

It is about to get more expensive. From 6 April 2027 property income gets its own rates. Finance Act 2026 (sections 6 and 7) set them at 22%, 42% and 47%, and Budget 2026 (28 October 2026) announced that they will instead be 24% at basic rate, 44% at higher rate and 49% at additional rate, four percentage points above the ordinary rates. The increase still has to be legislated in Finance Bill 2026-27. These rates apply in England and Northern Ireland, and in Wales unless the Welsh Government sets different rates; Scotland sets its own property rates (section 8). Finance cost relief is expected to be given at 24%, in line with the property basic rate. Our Budget 2026 summary explains the changes. If you have been putting off a review of how your portfolio is structured, the window before April 2027 is the time to do it.

How much difference does Section 24 actually make?

We plan around this by looking at who owns each property and how the borrowing is arranged. For more ways to reduce the bill, see our guide to tax on rental income.

Making Tax Digital for landlords

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax went live in April 2026. If your qualifying income, meaning your gross self-employment and property income before expenses and only your share of any jointly owned property, was over £50,000 in 2024/25, you must now keep digital records and file quarterly updates through compatible software, with quarterly deadlines on 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. The threshold falls to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028, which will bring in many landlords with two or more properties.

We set clients up on compatible software, handle the quarterly submissions and the year-end tax return, and use each quarterly update to check your projected tax bill, so there are no surprises in January. You can read more on our Making Tax Digital accountants page.

Should your buy-to-let properties go into a limited company?

Sometimes, and sometimes not. Inside a buy-to-let limited company, mortgage interest remains fully deductible and profits are taxed at corporation tax rates of 19% to 25%, with an effective marginal rate of 26.5% on each extra pound of profit between £50,000 and £250,000 (limits shared between associated companies), which still looks attractive next to 40% or 44%. But moving existing properties in can trigger capital gains tax and stamp duty land tax on the transfer, company borrowing is often more expensive, and money left in the company still has to be extracted before you can spend it, with dividends taxed at 10.75% and 35.75% from April 2026. A company buying a residential property pays the 5% higher rates surcharge on top of the standard rates, and where the dwelling costs more than £500,000 a flat 17% rate can apply instead, unless a relief such as property rental business relief applies. The right answer depends on your gains to date, your borrowing, whether you reinvest or spend the profits, and your inheritance plans. As buy-to-let accountants we model both routes with real numbers before you commit to either, including whether incorporation relief under section 162 TCGA 1992 is available on your facts: the letting must be a business in its own right (Ramsay v HMRC [2013] UKUT 226 (TCC)). For transfers on or after 6 April 2026 the relief no longer applies automatically (Finance Act 2026, section 39). It must be claimed in or with your Self Assessment return, by the first anniversary of the 31 January after the tax year of transfer. Our property tax case studies show what this has saved landlords in practice.

There is one more cost people forget. A company holding a residential property worth more than £500,000 falls inside the Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings. Property rental business relief usually reduces the charge to nil, but the return still has to be filed every year by 30 April, in advance, and the penalties for missing it run to £1,600 a year whether or not any tax was due. We build that into the model and file the returns.

Selling a property: the 60-day rule

When you sell a UK residential property at a gain and there is tax to pay, the capital gains tax has to be reported and paid within 60 days of completion, at 18% or 24% depending on your income, with an annual exempt amount of just £3,000. Private residence relief, lettings history and improvement costs all change the number, and this is one of the most common places we see overpayment. Our capital gains tax reporting service handles the calculation, the reliefs and the 60-day capital gains tax return.

Furnished holiday lets: the regime has gone, one relief has not

The furnished holiday lettings regime was abolished from April 2025 (6 April for income tax and capital gains tax, 1 April for corporation tax). For individual owners, mortgage interest on holiday lets is now restricted under Section 24 like any other residential let, and the pension, capital allowance and capital gains advantages have gone too. One transitional door is still open: where the holiday letting business genuinely ceased before 6 April 2025, Business Asset Disposal Relief at 18% rather than 24% can still be available on a sale within three years of the date the letting business ceased (section 169I(4)(b) TCGA 1992). For a business that ceased on 5 April 2025, contracts must be exchanged by 4 April 2028 at the latest, and earlier if the letting stopped sooner. We covered a real example in our hospitality case studies, where the difference was £37,200 on one disposal.

HMOs and supported living: where capital allowances can and cannot apply

A house in multiple occupation is taxed as residential letting income like any other buy-to-let, but it behaves differently in practice: licensing fees, higher gross yields and more wear. Capital allowances are where landlords most often go wrong. Plant for use in a dwelling-house does not qualify (section 35 Capital Allowances Act 2001), which is why ordinary landlords cannot claim on a kitchen or a boiler. Replacement furnishings and appliances are relieved instead under replacement of domestic items relief (section 311A ITTOIA 2005, or section 250A CTA 2009 for a company landlord). HMRC’s published view (Capital Allowances Manual CA11520) is that an HMO is itself a dwelling-house, including its hallways, stairs and landings, and it challenges claims for plant in those areas. The position is different where a building is divided into self-contained flats, because the common parts of a block of flats are not part of any dwelling, and in care homes or specialised supported housing, where the level of care makes the accommodation institutional rather than a home. We check which side of that line your property falls before anything is claimed.

Supported living lets work differently again. The property is usually let on a longer lease to a care provider or a registered provider of social housing, which changes the income profile. Whether capital allowances reach any of the spend depends on the layout, the level of care provided and the terms of the lease. We review all three so the claim holds up if HMRC asks.

What our landlord accountants do for you

• Self Assessment and MTD quarterly filing, including the SA105 property pages, allowable expenses and digital record keeping set up for you.
• Section 24 and April 2027 planning, reviewing how ownership and borrowing are structured before the new property rates arrive.
• Incorporation reviews, with full before-and-after numbers, including CGT, SDLT and financing costs.
• Accounts and tax for property companies, including accounts preparation, corporation tax returns and ATED returns.
• 60-day capital gains reporting, with every relief claimed on each sale.
• Portfolio and inheritance planning, including ownership between spouses and family investment structures, as part of our tax planning for high net worth individuals.
• HMRC enquiries and disclosures, including the Let Property Campaign for undeclared rental income. Our team includes professionals who have worked inside HMRC and handle HMRC tax investigations.
• Non-resident landlords, including the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme and UK returns for landlords living abroad; see our page for non-resident landlords and overseas companies.
• HMO and supported living advice, including the tax treatment of licensing costs, capital allowances where the building qualifies and the tax side of lets to care providers.

Frequently asked questions from landlords

Do I need to complete a tax return if I rent out one property?

Usually yes. If your rental income is more than £2,500 after allowable expenses, or more than £10,000 before them, you must report it on a Self Assessment return. If it is between £1,000 and £2,500, you must still tell HMRC, which will usually collect the tax through your tax code instead of asking for a return. If your gross rental income is £1,000 or less, the property allowance normally covers it and you do not need to tell HMRC. If you are unsure, book a free appointment and we will tell you where you stand.

When does Making Tax Digital apply to me?

From April 2026 if your qualifying income, meaning your self-employment and property income before expenses, was over £50,000 in 2024/25. The threshold drops to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. If you own property jointly, only your share of the rents counts. Once you are in, you file quarterly updates plus a year-end tax return through your software.

Can I still deduct my mortgage interest?

Not as an individual landlord letting residential property. You receive a basic-rate tax reduction worth 20% of the interest instead, expected to rise to 24% from April 2027, which costs higher-rate taxpayers real money. A limited company landlord can still deduct interest in full, which is one reason incorporation is worth modelling properly.

How long do I have to report a property sale to HMRC?

Sixty days from completion, using HMRC’s Capital Gains Tax on UK property account, with the tax paid in the same window. If you are UK resident you only need to report a residential sale where there is tax to pay. If you are non-resident you must report every disposal of UK property or land, even where there is no gain. Miss the deadline and penalties and interest follow (Schedule 2 Finance Act 2019).

Is it worth putting my buy-to-lets into a limited company?

It depends on your gains, borrowing, income needs and long-term plans. The company route deducts interest in full and pays lower rates on retained profit, but the transfer itself can cost CGT and SDLT. We run the numbers both ways before you decide, and we will tell you plainly if staying personal is the better answer.

Can I claim capital allowances on an HMO?

Usually not. HMRC treats an HMO, including its shared hallways, stairs and landings, as a dwelling-house, so plant in it does not qualify (CA11520). Allowances can be available on the common parts of a building split into self-contained flats. Supported housing is usually a dwelling-house too, but specialised supported housing, where a high level of care leaves residents little privacy, may not be, and care homes are not dwelling-houses at all. It is fact-specific, so take advice before claiming.

Do I need a landlord accountant?

Not always. With one property, low rents and no mortgage you may manage alone, but a landlord accountant usually pays for themselves once you have a mortgage, more than one property, a sale coming up or Making Tax Digital to deal with, because that is where the expensive mistakes happen.

Accountants for landlords in Manchester, London and Hertfordshire

Our landlord accountants work from offices in Manchester (Phoenix House, Stalybridge), London (16 Upper Woburn Place) and Hertfordshire (Potters Bar). Most landlord work is done online, so where your properties are does not matter. If you also develop or build, see our page for construction firms and property developers.

Speak to a Chartered Tax Adviser about your portfolio

From a first buy-to-let to a forty-property portfolio, the rules above interact, and the cost of getting them wrong compounds every year. Book a free appointment and a Chartered Tax Adviser will review your position, from Making Tax Digital readiness to the April 2027 rate rise, and tell you exactly what is worth doing and what is not.

Related pages: Personal tax returns · Capital gains tax reporting · Property tax case studies.