Leading agencies call for Government to reinstate tax relief for landlords

Foxtons Chief Executive Guy Gittins and Benham and Reeves’ Director Marc von Grundherr have joined a chorus of industry experts backing a petition calling for the Government to reinstate tax relief for landlords.

The Neg reported in December how leading industry figure Maxine Fothergill was asking fellow letting agents to sign a parliamentary petition calling for the Section 24 changes to buy-to-let landlord taxation to be scrapped.

OFFSET

Launched by Midlands landlord Simon Foster, the petition calls for the Government to allow landlords to offset their mortgage interest costs against their tax, something they were able to do until former Chancellor George Osborne scrapped the scheme in 2015.

Nearly 20,000 people have now signed the petition with Guy Gittins and Marc von Grundherr the latest high profile names to back the calls.

Keeping private landlords in the market is critical to addressing London’s rental supply issues.”

Guy Gittins says: “The extreme supply and demand imbalance in the London rental market is causing the highest rent increases we’ve seen for a decade.

“Back in 2017, as the Government started to phase out landlords’ ability to offset their interest payments against rental income, experts warned that some landlords would either increase rent prices out of necessity, or simply leave the market. Keeping private landlords in the market is critical to addressing London’s rental supply issues.

“Section 24 is just one component affecting rising rent prices in London, and just one of the many steps our government ought to review in balancing the unhealthy supply and demand metrics.”

LEGISLATIVE

Marc von Grundherr says that rather than commit to solving the housing crisis and build more homes, the Government has looked to bring about a short-term fix by forcing landlords to sell up and exit the buy-to-let sector.

He adds: “This has been orchestrated via a number of legislative changes designed to dampen the financial returns available to investors.

“High demand is already pushing rents ever higher and as more landlords exit, this problem will only get worse while the quality of available accommodation will also continue to decline.

“We’re urging the Government to reconsider just one of their recent changes and allow landlords to once again deduct their mortgage interest from their rental income.

“It’s time the Government realises that the nation’s landlords are the backbone of the private rental sector, but it’s simply not realistic to expect them to play such a vital role if it’s not financially viable.”

Sign the petition HERE.