Landlord group responds to Budget

News Category: Industry News

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The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) has responded to chancellor Alistair Darling's Budget speech.

Alan Ward, chairman of the lettings-focused group, suggested that the government has ignored last year's Rugg Report and other calls to start treating landlords like businesses in terms of taxation.

Changing the capital gains tax system to allow landlords the opportunity to claim "rollover relief" when dealing in property would have helped give the market a boost, he added.

There were a number of measures welcomed by the RLA, such as the carbon reduction target of 34 per cent by 2020 and the £450 million dedicated to energy-efficiency methods that will help some tenants get out of fuel poverty.

Mr Ward said: "The chancellor has preferred cars to homes by offering an allowance for scrapping old cars when he could have made a real impact by stimulating property renovation through a reduction in VAT to five per cent."

The Association of Residential Letting Agents and National Association of Estate Agents have both called this year's Budget a missed opportunity to boost the property sector.

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