I have a small mortgage on a property I rent out, live in accommodation linked to my job and I want to maximise this potential, I am 52 and I want to help my son (aged 23) get on the property ladder. How could we proceed and not fall foul of capital gains tax?

Published on 06.02.2008

Generally speaking you will not have to pay capital gains tax when you dispose of your home if all the following conditions are met:

1. Throughout the period that you owned it, it was your only home.

2. You did actually use it as your home all the time that you owned it.

3. Throughout the period that you owned it, you did not use it for any purpose other than as a home for yourself, your family and no more than one lodger.

4. The house and garden do not exceed 5,000 square metres (about one and a quarter acres; roughly the size of a football pitch).

However, there are many loop holes and strategies to explore. The best thing I can do is point you towards an excellent book called "How to Avoid Property Tax" by Carl Bayley BSc ACA

It is available from the TaxCafe website.

Simply fill in the form below and wait for the answer to be posted on this site.

Please remember: Gavin Brazg is not a Mortage Advisor and as such cannot answer your mortgage based questions. Instead please speak with an  unbiased mortgage advisor.