Allowable or Capital expenses - new properties & new landlord

Tax Planning and Financial

Hi all,

I am new to 'landlording' and navigating the quagmire of my first self assessment. Aargh.

I bought a property in mid-Jan 2022 and made some improvements and repairs before the start of a new AST (the first letting for the property) in April 2022.

1. Can I claim for utility bills (water, gas, electricity, council tax) as allowable expenses during that period, or is that a capital expense because the property was a new acquisition for me and never tenanted, or is this not claimable at all?
2. Also, if the property was previously a tenanted property (as is the case with another property I acquired that was bought with vacant possession but had been tenanted under a previous landlord), can I claim for the utilities, etc. during the void period while I was dealing with repairs, damp, etc.?
3. Lastly, are the legal costs for the purchase eventually claimable as capital expenses against CGT in the future? I am struggling to find a straight answer anywhere.

I am going to engage an accountant for tax year 22-23, but as there was no rental income for 21-22 while I was setting up the properties, I figured I could do this myself this time rather than accruing extra costs.

Thanks for any info / advice - really appreciated!