Is the Cost for Vacent Possession of a Property an Allowable Expense or Property Cost?

Arthur Says:
On page PIM2205 of the HMRC Property Income Manual it says that 'the cost of evicting an unsatisfactory tenant in order to re-let the property' is an allowable legal and professional cost, i.e. it can be offset against your rental income.

However, on page CG71262 of the HMRC Capital Gains Tax Manual it says that 'If a landlord makes a payment to a tenant to procure the surrender of a lease, that payment will qualify as allowable expenditure under TCGA92/S38 (1)(b), provided that it is reflected in the state or nature of the property at the date of its disposal by the landlord. An example of such expenditure which would not be reflected in the state or nature of the property at the date of disposal would be where, following the surrender of the old lease, the landlord granted a new lease on essentially the same terms.' This implies that it should be treated as a capital expense, to be claimed at the time of sale.

It must be either a capital or a revenue expense, it cannot be both. I think that perhaps the difference between the two statements is that when the payment is to the tenant, it is treated as a capital expense. Therefore, it must comply with the rule for allowable enhancement expenditure, i.e. it must be reflected in the state or nature of the property at the date of its disposal by the landlord. However, if the payment is to someone else, then it is a revenue expense.