Flat owners 'lose out in budget'
Apartment owners in Stockholm are set to be the big losers in the government's new budget, unveiled last week. This is according to new calculations made by HSB, one of Sweden's biggest landlords.
The average apartment owner in central Stockholm will be 1,500-2,000 kronor a year worse off due to Finance Minister Anders Borg's decision to charge interest on postponed payment of capital gains tax.
Under Borg's plan to reform property taxes, people will in future be charged 0.5 percent interest a year on profits made on previous properties, if they choose like most people to carry over their capital gains tax liability when they move home. At the moment, they can postpone paying the tax without any penalty.
The government will also replace property tax with a fixed charge of 1,200 kronor per apartment per year. This will benefit people in central Stockholm, but could lead to higher costs in the suburbs, according to HSB.
HSB calculates that if an apartment owner has made a profit of one million kronor on a previous property, the 5,000 kronor they will have to pay in extra interest will cancel out the approximately 3,000 kronor they will gain from reduced property tax.
"Our calculations show that Stockholm apartment owners will be the losers from the government's new budget," said Charlotte Axelsson, CEO of HSB Stockholm.
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The average apartment owner in central Stockholm will be 1,500-2,000 kronor a year worse off due to Finance Minister Anders Borg's decision to charge interest on postponed payment of capital gains tax.
Under Borg's plan to reform property taxes, people will in future be charged 0.5 percent interest a year on profits made on previous properties, if they choose like most people to carry over their capital gains tax liability when they move home. At the moment, they can postpone paying the tax without any penalty.
The government will also replace property tax with a fixed charge of 1,200 kronor per apartment per year. This will benefit people in central Stockholm, but could lead to higher costs in the suburbs, according to HSB.
HSB calculates that if an apartment owner has made a profit of one million kronor on a previous property, the 5,000 kronor they will have to pay in extra interest will cancel out the approximately 3,000 kronor they will gain from reduced property tax.
"Our calculations show that Stockholm apartment owners will be the losers from the government's new budget," said Charlotte Axelsson, CEO of HSB Stockholm.
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