Postby KarenFa » Sat Feb 03, 2018 1:09 am
Yes, I think I know the answer to this (but am not an accountant or tax professional). You can buy together in joint names, with a joint mortgage, but ask your solicitor to put you down as tenants in common rather than joint tenants in terms of ownership structure. Then do a trust deed in which your wife gets 99% and you 1% of the beneficial ownership. Then send a copy of this together with Form 17 to HMRC. Your wife will now get 99% of the income, and you 1%. If she has no other income, or very little income, there won't be a lot of tax for her to pay, and you will pay tax on only 1% of the rental income.
If you don't trust your wife, you should buy within the structure of a limited company.