Nov 14 2006
An accountancy, tax and business advisory company has published guidelines informing consumers of the best methods for the reduction of the amount of inheritance tax (IHT) they have to pay.
Vantis has issued six tips that aim to allow homeowners that pass away to pass the family home over to their relatives.
The tips include borrowing money using the house as security, making use of spousal exemptions, giving property to a trust and renting it or leasing it back, having the house purchased by children or co-owning and cohabiting in the home.
It reports that according to recent Department of Communities and Local Government figures from August to September this year, the average price of a UK property has risen from £197,631 to £198,552.
Antonio Risorto, associate director of the inheritance tax planning department at Vantis, said: "With the threshold for IHT starting at £285,000, a large number of home owners are now liable for IHT on the basis of the value of their home alone."
He added that IHT planning was often an undiscussed taboo, touching as it does on the sensitive issue of the death of a relative, but that this discomfort should be overcome to make sure the financial position of relatives can be improved.
IFA Promotion recently informed parents providing gifts to their children as a means of tax avoidance to seek out specialist advice from an independent financial adviser.
