CGT exemption for selling your own home. How long does it last?

  • Thread starter cath_wilson
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C

cath_wilson

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I have a house in Dublin. Having recently moved to the UK, I have been renting it out for the past 20 months whilst deciding where I will live. Are there tax benefits to selling my Irish house before I buy another one (whether it be in the Uk or Ireland?) i.e. do I get exempt from CGT for the first EURxx profit, and is there any limits on how long you have not lived there, even if you have not bought another house
Cheers
C
 
cath_wilson said:
, I have been renting it out for the past 20 months whilst deciding where I will live. ...i.e. do I get exempt from CGT
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As this house is not your PPR anymore and has been rented, CGT will have to be paid whne selling it.
 
An example - a property owned for 10 years was a PPR for 6 years, rented out for 4 years and then sold. In this case (4-1)/10 = 30% of any capital gain arising from the sale is assessable for CGT. Note that the first 12 months of rental after vacation of the property as a PPR are effectively exempt from CGT. Some people make the mistake that the CGT is calculated with reference to the market value of the property when it was first rented and any capital appreciation thereafter. This is wrong and the original purchase price (possibly indexed for inflation) and the percentage calculated above is what counts. If a former PPR is rented out within five years of purchase as an owner occupier then a clawback of stamp duty also applies. Does that help?
 
Folks,


The stamp duty clawback info. is [broken link removed]

Clubman - can you link to the info about that 12 month 'grace' period?

Also, How does one inform Revenue as the what property is ones PPR?

If one move and rents out ones PPR is one obliged to inform the mortage lender as well as revenue?

Cheers,

Noobie
 
Just thought of another one:

Is stamp duty clawback allowable expense in any form when 'converting' PPR to investment property?

N.
 
Thanks for all that!

Question: Is there a loophole?
If the difference between the price of buying the house to what it is worth now is signficant e.g. 100k. then would it be possible to 'move back into the house' i.e. not rent it, and have it as a 'base' with all the bills etc in one's name.
In this case does it become a PPR?
And if you sell it after a few months, how does the government know? Is it up to the individual who owns just the one property to declare that it is not their PPR? Or does the govt cross-check against tax returns (I'd be impressed if they were that organised)

Cheers
 
noobie99 said:
Clubman - can you link to the info about that 12 month 'grace' period?
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See section 5 of this Revenue booklet. As far as I know the fact that the property may be rented out during this period has no impact on the CGT situation but could trigger a stamp duty clawback if done in the first five years of ownership.

Also, How does one inform Revenue as the what property is ones PPR?
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Just write to them I suppose? They will probably know by default if you switch the claim for owner occupier mortgage interest relief from one mortgage/property to another.

If one move and rents out ones PPR is one obliged to inform the mortage lender as well as revenue?
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Depends on the terms & conditions of the specific mortgage agreement. In most cases alternative insurance cover will be required as a standard owner occupier policy will not cover a rental property.

Is stamp duty clawback allowable expense in any form when 'converting' PPR to investment property?
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As far as I know you can offset when calculating any CGT liability at disposal but not against rental income or anything like that. I would be wrong though.

If the difference between the price of buying the house to what it is worth now is signficant e.g. 100k. then would it be possible to 'move back into the house' i.e. not rent it, and have it as a 'base' with all the bills etc in one's name.
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I don't understand this. An individual or married couple can only have a single PPR and this is the property in which they normally reside. I don't unnerstand the "having a base" issue. A property is either one's PPR or it's not. Also - if the stamp duty clawback applies then there is no loophole to escape it. It is a self assessment tax and must be declared and paid once a property bought as an owner occupied PPR is rented out within five years of purchase. If CGT is an issue due to the property being a PPR, then rented and then a PPR again then the periods of rental and PPR occupancy are simply factored into the equation that I mentioned above when calculating what portion of any resale gain is subject to CGT.

In this case does it become a PPR?
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It becomes a PPR again but if the property was rented out for more than 12 months then CGT on some portion of the gain will still be an issue.

Some of these issues involve self assessment and declaration. There is no formal process for declaring a property one's PPR or an investment property as far as I know but, as ever, the onus is on the individual to keep his/her tax affairs up to date or face the consequences (immediately or in the future).

For more comprehensive assistance with these queries you should consider seeking independent, professional tax advice.
 
Thanks a mill for this. I think some of the laws may be different over here in the UK, and people telling me snippets of info caused my confusion - the usual story no doubt. I'm going to keep it as a rental, for my pension.

Cheers
 
Don't depend on amateurs (including me!) for comprehensive and authoritative tax advice. If in doubt get independent, professional advice.
 
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