Updating post from Reddit.
Hi there,
New landlord here with a super basic question. My service charge bill comes twice a year, paid as a lump sum, once at the end of December and once at the end of June. To correctly claim service charge off my taxable income, do I just claim the percentage of the bill which is relevant to the tax year (e.g. for the Dec bill covering 31st Dec-30th Jan, the tax year is 86/181 days of this bill, so I would multiply my overall Dec bill by 86/181 to arrive at the amount I can claim for)?
I, and I think most others would use cash basis accounting. It usually all evens out in the end.
Similar question: https://www.reddit.com/r/UKPersonalFinance/comments/13tx4bi/do_i_pro_rata_landlord_expenses_for_self/
Cash accounting. Claim it when you pay it.