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Liberty Sipp is planning a campaign to highlight the high time and costs involved in in-specie property transfers.
The firm said it believed it cost individuals far too much time and money to move a commercial or industrial property to a different provider. This potentially discouraged others from transferring properties.
The simple process of transferring assets has to be legally treated by the two firms as a sale and purchase, increasing the costs and time involved.
Typical costs includes exit fees from the initial provider, fees for the new provider, solicitors' fees for both parties and a new survey on the property which could add up to as much as £7,000.
Liberty Sipp said the best solution would be to treat the process as with all other assets in the Sipp and that the firm intended to highlight this in a campaign this autumn.
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Writing a blog on the firm's website, Matthew Rankine, technical sales and marketing manager at Liberty Sipp, said: "For example, with the transfer of discretionary fund manager accounts, all that's required to do is change the name – therefore the administration cost is minimal. No fuss is made as it's understood that this is a pretty straightforward administrative transaction — not a major investment decision or move that is being made for tax avoidance purposes.
"But it seems that in the UK we are in awe of property and cannot treat it like other assets – even when, during in specie Sipp property transfers, all that's being done is change the home of the property.
"Exactly why should such an unfair, costly and non-consumer friendly process be allowed to happen?"
Earlier this year, the Financial Conduct Authority said that Sipp firms which handle property would have higher capital-adequacy requirements due to the risk level of the area.

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