Over the past few years, landlords have been targeted by the government.

If you are a higher rate taxpayer with a significant mortgage on the property then the tax may go off with all or most of the profits generated.

If you do not want to transfer your property portfolio to a company then one possible way to remedy this situation is to transfer a portion of the property to your spouse if they are a basic rate taxpayer. This has the double effect of the income being taxed at a lower rate and the mortgage interest not being restricted.

Transfers between spouses are exempt from capital gains tax, meaning all that is required is some legal work by your solicitor.

However, the situation can be a bit trickier when there is a mortgage on the property which is now taken over in part by your spouse. Watch out for potential LBTT and ADS liabilities. In this situation, it would be advisable to transfer a proportion of the property, so that the equivalent portion of the mortgage attributed to your spouse is not more than £40k.