Second Home Capital Gains, Exemption for building works?

[CountessVronsky]

In the event that you're in the process of buying and selling a house at roughly the same time but you wind up overlapping with two houses because you're renovating the new one - do you get yourself into a second home CG tax issue? Or is there some kind of exemption (like a year, or an uninhabitable house, or similar?).

Thank you mumsnetters.

I'm not sure, but I have a feeling that there's 18 months grace. I think the 2nd property must then become your main residence.
I'd like to know for sure.

The accountant has weighed in. When you sell the house, you must have lived there as your primary residence for the past two years to avoid CGT. So, all OK.