Vat on Renovating empty property

[Millie13]

HI everyone. Am looking for advice on how to proceed and save on renovation costs on a property I am buying as my main residence . It has been empty for almost two years . I shall be purchasing it in Jan/Feb . I understand if a property is empty for two years , renovation would qualify for 5% vat rate ;which the builder will reclaim ). Am thinking of moving into a flat temporarily once I buy it till it becomes two years of an empty property to qualify . Has anyone done this and can advise me of what I must do to satisfy requirements for qualifying for 5% vat. I would be very grateful for you help and advice . Thank you

Are you trying to say the builder only needs to charge 5% Vat on their work? It will be up to the builder how they adhere to the VAT rules as they are exposed so you need to speak to a builder about this.
www.gov.uk/guidance/buildings-and-construction-vat-notice-708#section8
My read of this is that you need to buy the property after 2 years of it being empty But you can move in the day after work starts.
As I said, speak to a builder who’s risk it’ll be if they get it wrong. Also, I note that it doesn’t extend to subcontractors so you’ll need a firm that can do most of the work.