UK Property Guides
Deep dives into UK buy-to-let tax and structure decisions. Each guide ties back to a calculator on this site — so the numbers in the article are the ones you can model against your own deal.
BTL ICR Stress Test Explained: Why Lenders Run Four Different Tests
You don't get one max-loan number — you get four, depending on your tax band and product. We unpack the 125% / 145% / 165% ICR thresholds, the 5.5% stress rate, top-slicing, and how 5-yr fixes change the maths.
SDLT Calculator UK 2026: How to Calculate Stamp Duty for Every Buyer Type
Free SDLT calculator UK 2026 worked examples: first-time buyer, home mover, additional property (+5%), non-UK resident (+2%), company purchase (17% corporate envelope). All scenarios.
Should I Incorporate? A UK Landlord's Decision Framework for 2026
When does incorporating a UK buy-to-let portfolio actually make sense in 2026? A decision framework covering tax band, leverage, horizon, extraction needs and the s162 incorporation relief test.
Section 24 Calculator: 10 Worked Examples Every UK Landlord Should Know in 2026
Ten Section 24 worked examples for UK landlords in 2026: basic-rate, higher-rate, additional-rate, the £100k taper trap, multi-property aggregation, and the April 2027 22% reducer change.
MTD for Landlords 2026: Choosing Software and Setting Up Your Quarterly Workflow
MTD ITSA for UK landlords kicks in April 2026 for £50k+ income. We compare FreeAgent, Hammock, Landlord Vision and Coconut, then walk through the practical quarterly bookkeeping workflow.
Expat Mortgage UK 2026: A Lender-by-Lender Guide for Non-Residents
The 2026 UK expat mortgage market mapped: Skipton International, Kent Reliance, Marsden, Hampshire Trust, HSBC Expat. LTV, rates, country acceptance and FATCA tier breakdown.
Capital Gains Tax on UK Property in 2026: The Complete Guide
Complete UK Capital Gains Tax guide for property in 2026: 18%/24% rates, the £3,000 AEA, PRR, Lettings Relief, 60-day reporting, worked examples and how to minimise CGT legally.
UK Expat Buying Property in 2026: Mortgages, SDLT and the Hidden Friction
Living abroad and buying in the UK is harder than it should be: non-resident SDLT +2%, foreign-income haircuts (typically 25%), lower max LTVs (65–75%), country-tier restrictions for US/Canada/Australia residents. The full picture, with numbers.
HMO vs Single-Let: The Real After-Tax Comparison
HMOs gross more — but bills-included costs, HMO licence fees, fire safety, and Article 4 planning friction take a real bite. We compare HMO and single-let on a like-for-like after-tax basis at typical UK numbers.
The Interest-Rate Cliff: Will Your Fixed-Rate BTL Deals Survive 2026/27?
Hundreds of thousands of UK BTL fixes end in 2026. We simulate +1/+2/+3pp rate shocks on the revert rate, re-run lender ICR at the new payment, and surface which deals refinance — and which don't.
When to Sell a BTL: The Optimal Exit-Year Method
The "right" year to sell isn't the year of the biggest paper gain — it's the year of peak annualised after-tax return. We project every future year through the full BTL model + CGT (band split, AEA, PRR) to find the genuine optimum.
Making Tax Digital for Landlords: Are You in the 2026 Wave?
MTD for Income Tax mandates quarterly digital submissions from April 2026 for landlords with gross self-employed + rental income above £50,000. We walk through who's in, what changes, and the cash-aside calculator you'll need.
SDLT vs LBTT vs LTT: The Same House in Three Countries
The UK has three separate transaction-tax regimes — SDLT in England & NI, LBTT in Scotland, LTT in Wales — with very different bands, surcharges, and reliefs. Here's exactly what the same purchase price costs in each jurisdiction in 2026/27.
What Incorporating Your BTL Portfolio Actually Costs (and When It Pays Back)
Transferring a personally-held portfolio into a Ltd triggers SDLT on the deemed market-value sale (with the +5% surcharge), CGT on the deemed disposal, and refi costs. We compute the all-in one-off cost and the year Section 24 savings repay it.
Personal vs Limited Company for BTL in 2026: The Real Numbers
About 80% of new UK BTL purchases now go through limited companies. We model the after-tax cash flow under both structures across extract / retain / hybrid strategies — and show the crossover year your structure actually overtakes.
Section 24 Explained: Why Your "Good Yield" Might Be a Loss in 2026
Mortgage interest stopped being a deduction for individual UK landlords in 2020. Here's the maths behind why a 6% gross yield can become a £2,000 after-tax loss — and the 60%+ effective tax band in the £100k–£125,140 personal-allowance taper zone.