CGT Property Calculator: Selling a Second Home or Rental Property 2026/27

Residential property gains are taxed at 18% for basic-rate taxpayers and 24% for higher and additional-rate taxpayers in 2026/27. Which rate applies depends on your total taxable income plus the gain: if adding the gain to your income keeps you within the basic-rate band, the 18% rate applies to the portion within that band, and 24% applies to any excess.

You get a £3,000 annual exempt amount for 2026/27, which applies across all your capital gains for the tax year, not just property. Anything above £3,000 of net gains is taxable at 18% or 24% (for residential property). Married couples and civil partners each have their own £3,000 exemption, so transferring part-ownership to a spouse before sale can effectively double the exemption available.

You can deduct the original purchase price, stamp duty paid on purchase, legal and estate agent fees on both purchase and sale, and the cost of capital improvements (an extension, a new kitchen, a loft conversion) — but not routine maintenance or repairs, and not mortgage interest, which is an income tax matter, not a CGT one.

You must report the gain and pay any CGT due within 60 days of completion, using HMRC's UK Property Reporting Service, which is separate from your annual Self Assessment return. Missing the 60-day deadline triggers automatic late-filing penalties, starting at £100, plus interest on any tax paid late.

Usually not, because of Private Residence Relief, which exempts your main home from CGT for the period you lived in it as your only or main residence, plus the final nine months of ownership regardless of occupation. CGT on property sales typically applies to second homes, buy-to-let properties, inherited property you never lived in, and any period a property that was once your main home was let out or used as a second home.

You get Private Residence Relief for the proportion of your total ownership period during which the property was your only or main residence, plus the final nine months of ownership. The gain is apportioned on a time basis: if you owned a property for 10 years and lived in it for 4 of those years (plus the final nine months counted automatically), roughly 45% of the total gain would be exempt, with the remaining 55% subject to CGT.

Yes. Capital losses on property (or other chargeable assets) can be offset against capital gains in the same tax year, and unused losses can be carried forward indefinitely to offset future gains, provided they are reported to HMRC — usually within four years of the tax year in which the loss arose.

Each spouse or civil partner is taxed on their own share of the gain and has their own separate £3,000 annual exempt amount, so a jointly-owned property split 50/50 effectively gives the couple £6,000 of combined exemption. Transfers between spouses happen at no gain, no loss for CGT purposes, so rebalancing ownership shares before a sale (to use both allowances, or to shift the gain toward the lower-tax-rate spouse) is a common and legitimate piece of planning.

Your acquisition cost for CGT purposes is the property's market value at the date of death (probate value), not what the original owner originally paid. Any gain you are taxed on when you later sell is only the increase in value since the date of death, and Inheritance Tax (if any was due on the estate) is a completely separate tax from CGT.

No, generally not. Business Asset Disposal Relief (the 18% flat rate on qualifying business disposals) applies to trading business assets and shares in a trading company, not to buy-to-let or residential letting, which HMRC treats as investment activity rather than a trade — even where the letting is a full-time occupation for the landlord.