Renting out UK home - advice please!
Jun 29th 2010, 3:06 pm
#31
Forum Regular
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 210
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
We had a property in the UK until very recently and had been renting it for over 3 years. With the current low interest rates are managing to generate a bit of income.
I'm not a tax expert, but you can earn up to the UK threshold before you pay tax, so just check as if you are not deducting mortgage, you may end up being taxed on the income.
We bank in the UK with First Direct and in Oz HSBC (same company) transfers between the two banks as 10 pounds, so not too bad.
Get an NRL1 from for the tax office. That way you'll receive 100% of the rent, without the form the rental agent must (by law) deduct income tax from the rent.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/cnr/nr_landlords.htm
You do by law have to declare the tax on your Australian Tax return and you do have to fill out a UK Tax return You need a URN (Unique Reference Number)
So long as you don't earn over your allowance, you have no worries. If the house in in joint names, you can claim 2 x the allowance.
Check out Rent insurance, to cover the rent if the tenant cannot pay. They will pay the rent for as long as it takes to get the house back so that it can be rented again. I think we paid about 250 GBP per year.
www.letsure.co.uk
Check out British gas Home Care to cover all your plumbing, electrics, central heating etc.
We had the central heating control pack up last year and the boiler before that... Well worth the money.
http://www.britishgas.co.uk/products...nd-repair.html
Recommend you use an agent (that you know is good). Our agent sent the money on time every month and telephoned with any problems or questions. The first agent we had was the worse you could imagine.... late sending money (if at all) eventually she went belly up and took my tenants deposit, so it really is important to find a good one.
One last thing, get a good tax accountant!
We had planned to keep ours and use it for retirement.... BEWARE.... House prices are so high in Oz (some parts) we have had to sell and bring the money over for a deposit. Do you homework to see if you need the equity or can afford to buy here.
Good luck
Neil.
I'm not a tax expert, but you can earn up to the UK threshold before you pay tax, so just check as if you are not deducting mortgage, you may end up being taxed on the income.
We bank in the UK with First Direct and in Oz HSBC (same company) transfers between the two banks as 10 pounds, so not too bad.
Get an NRL1 from for the tax office. That way you'll receive 100% of the rent, without the form the rental agent must (by law) deduct income tax from the rent.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/cnr/nr_landlords.htm
You do by law have to declare the tax on your Australian Tax return and you do have to fill out a UK Tax return You need a URN (Unique Reference Number)
So long as you don't earn over your allowance, you have no worries. If the house in in joint names, you can claim 2 x the allowance.
Check out Rent insurance, to cover the rent if the tenant cannot pay. They will pay the rent for as long as it takes to get the house back so that it can be rented again. I think we paid about 250 GBP per year.
www.letsure.co.uk
Check out British gas Home Care to cover all your plumbing, electrics, central heating etc.
We had the central heating control pack up last year and the boiler before that... Well worth the money.
http://www.britishgas.co.uk/products...nd-repair.html
Recommend you use an agent (that you know is good). Our agent sent the money on time every month and telephoned with any problems or questions. The first agent we had was the worse you could imagine.... late sending money (if at all) eventually she went belly up and took my tenants deposit, so it really is important to find a good one.
One last thing, get a good tax accountant!
We had planned to keep ours and use it for retirement.... BEWARE.... House prices are so high in Oz (some parts) we have had to sell and bring the money over for a deposit. Do you homework to see if you need the equity or can afford to buy here.
Good luck
Neil.
Jun 29th 2010, 11:45 pm
#32
Social Grenade Thrower
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: South Coast, NSW
Posts: 3,625
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
Great post apart from the bit about the British Gas homecare, I wouldn't bother. They sometimes take ages to send someone out, and normally the plumber doesn't know his *ss from his *lbow, and if you have a good agent, then they in turn have a good plumber who does all their gas/plumbing works. The same with electrician, and they can come out literally at a moments notice.
Jun 30th 2010, 2:09 am
#33
Just Joined
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 10
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
We have rented our house out for the last 9 years with no major problems. I would recommend a good agent with lots of experience, this has saved us a multitude of problems. Remember you get what you pay for to a certain extent, interview the agents and find one you feel comfortable with, and who is happy to communicate by email (and responds to emails promptly). Forget British Gas they were completely hopeless, use the agency recommended one they have more to lose if it all goes wrong (ie loss of the agency contract).
Best to rent out then forget it's your 'home', it becomes an asset.
Best to rent out then forget it's your 'home', it becomes an asset.
Jun 30th 2010, 2:37 am
#34
Social Grenade Thrower
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: South Coast, NSW
Posts: 3,625
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
I see where you are coming from with BG, but our home is in a small village and the agent we went for does it almost as a hobby, only about 20 houses on their books. One of the reasons we went with them was because they are extremely professional yet so in touch with our village and are valued members of it. However, as much as I love giving work to the local populace, its a tradesmans market where we live so they can charge a lot for even just a call out, hence my preference for a one off payment with BG. I still feel I am being a dutiful landlord by having this cover so can live with that.
Jun 30th 2010, 3:23 am
#35
Retired
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 34,649
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
Our mortgage is 140k and or house is on the market for 140k we would obviously expect offers below this so would acquire some debt due to the shortfall as the agent fees need to come off the sale price also. It is 5k lower than another near-by of the same style and better positioned (More parking ect) (There is another 20k above our price!)
It's not feasible to go any lower without gaining massive debts -which isn't what we want. Our plan was to go debt free and start a fresh!
It's not feasible to go any lower without gaining massive debts -which isn't what we want. Our plan was to go debt free and start a fresh!
I'm not saying don't rent the property ... that's your choice. Just understand that if you have a debt millstone, you need to think about how you are going to reduce that burden going forward.
Jul 19th 2010, 9:31 am
#36
'Made in Ulster' Member
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Brisbane, QLD. (Though an Ulster girl through and through!)
Posts: 6,578
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
Am I being taken for a ride?! I emailed my agent to ask if I could pay him the next 6 months fully managed fee upfront, he replied with the following:
Hi Jenny,
Ok rate is 7% of rent, so fee would be same as last time i.e. £178.50 + VAT, however we discounted your initial tenant finding fee by £25 last time round in acknowledgment of paying in advance. So this time round we will reduce your management fee to 6% which equates to a similar discount i.e. fee is now £153+VAT (£179.78 INCLUSIVE OF VAT).
How does that sound?
R
So he's giving me the management fee at 6%, should I be paying VAT too though, surely that should be included in the 6% or am I being a bit thick!?Ok rate is 7% of rent, so fee would be same as last time i.e. £178.50 + VAT, however we discounted your initial tenant finding fee by £25 last time round in acknowledgment of paying in advance. So this time round we will reduce your management fee to 6% which equates to a similar discount i.e. fee is now £153+VAT (£179.78 INCLUSIVE OF VAT).
How does that sound?
R
Jul 19th 2010, 9:37 am
#37
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jan 2009
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 20,821
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
Am I being taken for a ride?! I emailed my agent to ask if I could pay him the next 6 months fully managed fee upfront, he replied with the following:
Hi Jenny,
Ok rate is 7% of rent, so fee would be same as last time i.e. £178.50 + VAT, however we discounted your initial tenant finding fee by £25 last time round in acknowledgment of paying in advance. So this time round we will reduce your management fee to 6% which equates to a similar discount i.e. fee is now £153+VAT (£179.78 INCLUSIVE OF VAT).
How does that sound?
R
So he's giving me the management fee at 6%, should I be paying VAT too though, surely that should be included in the 6% or am I being a bit thick!?
Jul 19th 2010, 9:41 am
#38
'Made in Ulster' Member
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Brisbane, QLD. (Though an Ulster girl through and through!)
Posts: 6,578
Jul 19th 2010, 10:28 am
#40
'Made in Ulster' Member
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Brisbane, QLD. (Though an Ulster girl through and through!)
Posts: 6,578
Jul 23rd 2010, 6:13 am
#41
Banned
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 22,348
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
Am I being taken for a ride?! I emailed my agent to ask if I could pay him the next 6 months fully managed fee upfront, he replied with the following:
Hi Jenny,
Ok rate is 7% of rent, so fee would be same as last time i.e. £178.50 + VAT, however we discounted your initial tenant finding fee by £25 last time round in acknowledgment of paying in advance. So this time round we will reduce your management fee to 6% which equates to a similar discount i.e. fee is now £153+VAT (£179.78 INCLUSIVE OF VAT).
How does that sound?
R
So he's giving me the management fee at 6%, should I be paying VAT too though, surely that should be included in the 6% or am I being a bit thick!?Ok rate is 7% of rent, so fee would be same as last time i.e. £178.50 + VAT, however we discounted your initial tenant finding fee by £25 last time round in acknowledgment of paying in advance. So this time round we will reduce your management fee to 6% which equates to a similar discount i.e. fee is now £153+VAT (£179.78 INCLUSIVE OF VAT).
How does that sound?
R
Jul 23rd 2010, 7:22 am
#42
'Made in Ulster' Member
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Brisbane, QLD. (Though an Ulster girl through and through!)
Posts: 6,578
Jul 23rd 2010, 7:48 am
#43
Pass The Post
Joined: Mar 2003
Location: Ping Ponged York via Melbourne and now pinged to Ferny Hills, Brisbane
Posts: 1,177
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
There are tax implications on renting a home out in the UK you have to declare it in Oz I believe and you also need to let the tax man know in the UK that you are renting the house out.
Jo
Jul 24th 2010, 2:55 am
#45
'Made in Ulster' Member
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Brisbane, QLD. (Though an Ulster girl through and through!)
Posts: 6,578
Re: Renting out UK home - advice please!
Just found out overnight that the cheque from the tenant has cleared, relief! Was a bit concerned it'd be a rubber one since the returned contract had his missus' name scored out and just his signature, how untrusting am I eh, but I just smelt summit fishy! 