Lord Flight
-
Latest property news
Buy-to-let tax squeeze should be “scrapped” says high profile Tory peer
A former Tory grandee has criticised the government’s recent buy-to-let tax tax squeeze, describing it as “ill conceived”. Former Tory vice-chairman and shadow Vice Secretary to the Treasury Lord Flight (pictured, right) has called for the government to scrap many of the recent taxes on landlords and “provide the support needed to the individuals and small businesses who make up the vast majority of the country’s landlords”. Stifling investment His comments were made on the Conservative Home website over the weekend, in which he also calls for the recent hike in Stamp Duty on buy-to-let purchases and reduction in reliefs to be scrapped because they are “stifling investment, as anyone could have predicted” and catching out “natural Conservative voters”. “The decisions to impose a stamp duty levy on the purchase of homes to rent out, coupled with restricting mortgage interest relief to the basic rate of income tax and the decision to tax a landlord’s turnover rather than profits, are causing many landlords simply not to invest further in much needed new homes to rent; or even to consider leaving the sector altogether,” he says. “The mortgage interest restrictions need to be scrapped, and the stamp duty levy needs also…
Read More » -
Regulation & Law
Tory Peer rebels against the Chancellor’s buy-to-let plans
Lord Flight (left), Chairman of Flight & Partners Recovery Fund, and a former Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, joined a chorus of disapproval today as he spoke out against the Government’s plans to raise taxes and limit allowances for buy-to-let investors. He wrote, “I hope the Government will re-think its sudden attack on Buy-to-let this summer and autumn. Otherwise, it risks the very crisis in the buy-to-let housing and lending markets of which the Governor of the Bank of England has recently warned. “Buy-to-let has been an entirely sensible market economy development, in most cases as an alternative to saving for old age via pension schemes. Up to World War II, investing in rented property was the main method of providing for an income in old age. Given the poor performance of the stock market over the last 20 years, it is hardly surprising that many people have opted for Buy-to-let investment as an alternative, and more successful, retirement provisioning investment. Buy-to-let has, moreover, provided some three million homes for those not able yet to afford to buy their homes – especially in London. “Buy-to-let does not enjoy any of the major tax advantages of pension saving: i.e. tax…
Read More »
