The tax relief offered to buy-to-let owners is contributing to the problems faced by first-time buyers and their efforts to get onto the housing ladder. At the opening of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH)’s Annual Conference and Exhibition, CIH President Paul Diggory has called on the Government to tackle the runaway buy-to-let market.

The CIH President argued that the phenomenal growth in buy-to-let investments is contributing to the affordable housing crisis by pricing first-time-buyers out of the market. Information from 2006 indicates that 11 per cent of all new lending in 2006 was in the buy-to-let market – 57 per cent higher than in 2005 and totalling £100 billion.

CIH wants Government to remove the tax relief currently available in an effort to direct whatever new affordable housing supply is available actually goes to those people who are struggling to get on the housing ladder.

In his opening speech at the UK’s CIH President Paul Diggory: "The Government has acknowledged that there is an acute lack of affordable housing across the country so it does not make sense to still offer tax relief to those who buy, simply to rent. Buy-to-let owners have a financial advantage over those trying to buy their first home, as well as pushing house prices even higher.

"We hope the new Chancellor of the Exchequer removes this tax relief as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review due in the autumn. We also want more to be done to halt the rise in the ‘buy-not-to-let’ market. If you wander around some of the new developments in our cities after work you can see there are no lights on – a clear sign that no one actually lives there. Investors can make enough money from rising house prices without having to let the flats to tenants – and they are buying whole floors or even entire blocks off-plan.

"Local authorities already have limited powers to tackle some empty homes but this doesn’t go nearly far enough. These empty flats are contributing nothing to the crisis in affordable housing or to the Government’s sustainable communities agenda", concluded Mr Diggory.

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(Issued on behalf of the CIH by Jill Dwyer, Media Relations Officer, CIH Press Office, Octavia House, Westwood Way, Coventry CV4 8JP. Telephone 024 7685 1780. Fax: 024 7669 5110).

Notes to Editors:

- The CIH is the professional body for individuals working in housing. Its primary aim is to maximise the contribution that housing professionals make to the well-being of communities. CIH has over 20,000 individual members working for local authorities, housing associations, Arms Length Management Organisations, Government bodies, educational establishments and the private sector.  Further information is available at: www.cih.org

- HMRC allows Landlords to offset the costs of running a rental property against the tax payable on rental income. Tax on rental income is payable at normal rates: 22 or 40 per cent. Tax relief is available to offset mortgage interest, letting agent fees, replacement furniture and repairs. It is not possible to offset improvements such as double glazing minimising the incentive to get properties to the decent homes standard.