Capital allowances

Each year millions of pounds of tax allowances and reliefs go unclaimed.

Tax issues are often overlooked or considered at a late stage in property transactions, but when the full suite of options for tax allowances are used proactively they can secure significant savings from acquisitions, disposals, developments and brown field remediations.

For many tax is a consequence, rather than a strategy. Working alongside our clients to deeply understand their circumstances we leverage tax reliefs to positively shape property strategies; maximising your potential, opportunities and savings across property transactions and developments.

We understand that commercial business drivers will always dominate property development and investment, but if tax allowances and reliefs are used strategically they can significantly enhance returns. Our experience means that we know where to introduce and implement tax allowance strategies for maximum effect.

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Our services are provided by senior advisers that have performed at the highest level across a variety of service platforms. Accounting, surveying and property consultancy experience blends together a considered and mature approach to claim solutions. We assume a thorough approach is required in all client requests but wherever possible we adopt simple, clear and disclosed services.

We believe capital allowances are an essential aspect in any project armoury and an invaluable value engineering tool. The inclusion of capital allowances estimates to project viability, feasibility, and financial modelling studies is paramount to enable our clients to fully consider project scope and returns. Maximising capital allowances then becomes an intrinsic project element, providing confidence to clients, and all stakeholders and interested parties.

Having a range of understanding through plant and machinery allowances, general plant, integral features, super deductions and first year allowances, structure and buildings allowances, contributions, grants, repairs, etc requires a holistic experienced approach to evaluate the best approach required.

Best practice and a high level of understanding underpin capital allowances transaction strategies, whether in selling or buying scenarios. Adopting a bespoke forward-thinking strategy establishes a competitive advantage over the opposing transacting parties, and in this respect capital allowances is no different to client investment and negotiation advice. A little proactive planning using foresight and judgement goes a long way to providing knowledgeable and maximised tax outcomes.

The building fixtures environment has evolved many times over the last 20-30 years, with finally, in the last 5 years at least, HMRC achieving a greater level of control and transparency. Significant opportunities remain however, for both sellers and buyers through an understanding of seller structure and positioning, protection and creative use of allowances both unidentified or identified, or knowing the right information required at the right time out with the standard CPSE enquiries. The key to success is in engaging the right expert early.

Our cross trained senior surveying and tax experts have a unique set of skills which are required to assess, evaluate, review and document optimised capital allowances claims for our clients. We believe that core capabilities are essential to maximise savings in all industry sectors including offices, hotels and leisure, healthcare, manufacturing and so on. Whilst some industries require a more truly specialised approach such as the water industry or previously sports stadia and grounds (safety at work), we are also firm advocates of establishing expert knowledge in our client sectors.

Years of experience in listening to our clients business ideas and aspirations has taught us where best to place our focus in building strategies to increase allowances and savings. Existing building alterations may throw up a high degree of incidental assets, hotel projects will include a significant amount of embellishments and finishes, and healthcare builds will contain a high incidence of protective and clean assets. We listen, we learn, and we understand to how best develop our services to serve our individual clients.

Capital allowances advice requires a good degree of technical due diligence and entitlement considerations, and a high focus on analytical cost skills. However, the extremely valuable land remediation relief requires an opposing approach. To secure this relief It is fundamentally important to carry out a thorough understanding and review of all relevant client, transaction, property, environmental considerations, remediation strategy, and relevant costs to advise clients property. Failure to do so could be very costly.

A full review of this tax relief by HMRC several years back resulted in higher levels of legislative entitlement to focus the financial benefit where previously intended. Robust due diligence is key and must be enacted with the both the client’s and project consultant’s assistance to enable full disclosure of all relevant case facts. Our consultants are highly motivated to ensuring all client’s take advantage of this valuable project saving but with the correct, detailed approach.