‘Thousands of landlords selling up’ in face of EPC challenge

Posted 30th May 2023 by ctatax-admin

Cornerstone Tax is the UK’s leading property tax advisers, specialising in Stamp Duty Land Tax. We’ve reclaimed over £15 million in overpaid SDLT in the last 12 months. Contact us for property tax advice, or to see if you are eligible to claim a refund from HMRC on overpaid Stamp Duty

Read the article on The Negotiator 

“Thousands of buy-to-let landlords are selling their properties ahead of the government changes to EPC regulations, new data shows.

Property tax specialist firm Cornerstone Tax found that just one-in-five landlords now say their investment has been a profitable one, with the same number admitting that they have lost thousands.

Read: A simple guide to tell if you’ve overpaid on stamp duty

Around 65,000 rental properties went up for sale in the first three months of 2023, 36,460 of those holding an EPC rating of D or less, Cornerstone says.

By 2028, it is proposed that landlords must ensure that their properties hold a minimum EPC standard rating of C or higher, or face fines of up to £30,000.

David Hannah, Group Chairman at Cornerstone Tax, says that expensive upgrades will make it difficult for landlords to maintain a viable letting portfolio, especially if they must spend money on a property that isn’t worth much more than the cost of the work.

“Under the changes to the EPC ratings for buy-to-let properties, only 0.2% of UK landlords would qualify for government funding.

There must be more government help, Hannah says. “Overall, I believe getting all rental properties to a standard EPC rating of C will be far too costly for landlords.

“I advise landlords to work out how much it will cost them to make these changes, and offset the time it will take for their investment to pay off.”

Cornerstone Tax is the UK’s leading property tax advisers, specialising in Stamp Duty Land Tax. We’ve reclaimed over £15 million in overpaid SDLT in the last 12 months. Contact us for property tax advice, or to see if you are eligible to claim a refund from HMRC on overpaid Stamp Duty