newhome

Surely if you declare that the new property is your principal private residence that should be enough? If you can’t own 2 homes then surely that would preclude anyone self building from applying for a CIL exemption if they have a holiday home or are even named in a trust that contains a dwelling?

Can you use the excess solar with the GivEnergy charger? Can you prevent charging the battery with the excess solar? I think I might prefer to charge it via the grid overnight if the export tariffs remain higher than the cheap overnight slots.

Thanks. Yes my brother said I might need microinverters. Will have a look at the shading properly when I move in.

I’m moving into a new (to me) house at the end of the month and one of the first things I’m going to need is an EV charger. I also intend installing PV as I have a largeish south facing roof. Plus I’ve been thinking about installing a battery too. My brother has 3 lots of solar PV installed at different times, then he installed a Zappi, then an Eddi and finally a Givenergy battery. The system has evolved rather than being specified holistically to begin with and he currently can’t do all of the things on my wish list so I’m thinking that it might be best to have it all installed at the same time with a clear spec given to an installer. I have single phase electrics and my wish list is: 7KW EV charger As much solar PV as I can fit on the roof A battery (13.5 kWh or thereabouts but maybe that’s overkill?) Something to heat the DHW An app to control it all. I want to be able to choose whether to use the solar excess to charge the car, battery and heat DHW, or not, or whether to set to import from the grid at a time of my choosing. I don’t want the system to consider the EV charging as part of the general house load as I don’t really want to charge the car using the battery. I am planning to be on Octopus Agile so it may be better to export excess solar than use it to charge the car or heat DHW unless the Agile rates are off the scale on the odd day. Suggestions of set ups welcome please. I only really know about the MyEnergi products as my brother has them although he did not buy the Libbi when he added a battery recently due to cost. Photo of south facing roof

I think it’s personal choice but as a preference I prefer to do as much as I can online. They do return the invoices (and other supporting documentation) however.

3 years after completion. You can lose the exemption any time during the 3 years via selling the property, letting it out, not using as main residence etc.

You are allowed up to 2 lodgers before a property is classed as an HMO. Unfortunately as you have taken in 3 lodgers you have unknowingly created an HMO in your house and have thus breached the self build exemption. https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/houses-in-multiple-occupation#:~:text=Your property may be classed,to more than 2 people. Be warned that there are many other regulations that govern an HMO that they might now come after you for!

Part 2 should be send CIL Form 6 Commencement Notice, wait for council to acknowledge, finish build and get completion cert As long as you don’t start anything before they acknowledge the form then you can’t be liable, but don’t forget the final step / documentation required in the euphoria of having finally finished.

Also note that you won’t qualify for the VAT reclaim if you are not building a house for you or a family member to live in.

Depends what your invoice says. If you have a completely separate invoice for materials and evidence that you paid the full amount to the builder then you can add the invoices to your VAT claim and add a covering explanation that your builder had to order the materials on your behalf as they had a trade account with the company. Also say that you paid the invoice in full and have payment evidence if needed. HMRC have definitely been refunding VAT paid on this basis (I know a couple of people who got it back). If your invoice shows both labour and the supply of materials then you will not be able to get the VAT refunded as a ‘joint’ invoice counts as supply & fit and must be zero rated.

No one can supply you materials at the 5% rate. This is for labour and supply & fit arrangements only so the only way you can benefit from the reduced VAT is to instruct a VAT registered builder unfortunately. On a ‘more DIY-led project’ you can’t benefit from the 5% rate unfortunately for work that you are doing yourself. The exception is for houses that have been empty for 10 years that are eligible for the VAT reclaim scheme.

If the invoices are in your name it’s highly unlikely they will ask you to prove who paid for them. Even if they did you can evidence that it was a family member who will be living in the property. They wouldn’t accept the invoice if it was paid by a company for example unless you could prove that you paid the full cost including the VAT but that doesn’t apply here.

Oh sorry to hear that. Glad you are happy in your new abode though. I sold my self build and am looking for somewhere nearer family too now.

You sold your lovely self build?!

Strictly speaking for a new build you can only claim for materials bought supply only that you used in the fabric of the build. So marker paint for lines isn’t covered but paint is so just note it as paint and put the invoice in. You can claim for turf. It’s artificial turf that’s not eligible as it’s like carpet I guess. Hard landscaping, boundary fencing and gates (not electric components), topsoil and turf are all eligible. As you note you can only claim for trees and plants if part of a defined landscaping scheme. Carpets and thus underlay are not eligible but underlay for hard flooring is as hard flooring is eligible. Blinds are now eligible but curtains are not, but curtain poles are. There are definitely some nuances but most things are pretty straightforward really. The main thing to ensure is that you are invoiced at the correct VAT rate, especially if your build is going to take some time. For labour and supply & fit (for eligible work) a new build should be zero rated. HMRC will not refund VAT incorrectly charged so ensure that the VAT rate is agreed before you instruct the builder to do the work. If the invoice is wrong get it sorted straightaway, before you pay it as it’s much easier to do it then rather than trying to get a refund later. VAT adjustments can only go back 4 years so no good asking a business for a VAT refund from 5 years ago, or if they have gone out of business or if they have de registered for VAT. Also ensure that you have a proper invoice as HMRC will refuse pro forma invoices or ‘orders’. They will allow some retail till receipts but best to get a proper VAT invoice for larger spends. They often ask for window schedules if a breakdown isn’t on the invoice so if you have bought windows supply only save yourself some time and attach the window schedule to the invoice when you send the claim in. Similarly for kitchen cupboards or other large purchases for multiple items if there is not a decent breakdown on the invoice. You can send the schedule in later but you will get that invoice refused initially so just send it up when you submit the claim. There are some other nuances such as equipment hired is standard rated but a machine hired with a driver is zero rated. You could do worse than to have a read through this thread that covers quite a lot of these nuances (but probably not all). HMRC isn’t always consistent either. For example sometimes they have allowed a reclaim for a hob with built in ventilation and other times they have not. Luck of the draw in terms of who you get checking your claim really. Some builders don’t want the perceived hassle of zero rating either so sometimes you have to rule some builders out or bite the bullet and pay the VAT.