By Tony Booth

Tax returns have to be submitted by 30th September, if you want HM Revenue and Customs to calculate your liability for you - or in three months from now, if you and/or your accountant intend preparing the necessary calculations for submission to the Inland Revenue.

Many investors leave the job of preparing their tax return until it is far too late, meaning this all-important and very cost-effective task is often rushed through at the last minute with dire consequences.

Poor planning, misplaced or unrecorded receipts and chaotic accounting methods can lead to a small fortune in allowable deductions being lost forever.

Preparing accounts for the annual tax assessment is just one of the many laborious but crucial tasks a landlord has to perform, regardless of whether they are fully employed in other forms of work or are exclusively self-employed and therefore entirely absorbed in a property investment occupation.