Troubled DIY and gardening chain Homebase was expecting around £5m in tax cuts before collapsing into administration last week.

It comes as the struggling company set a deadline of the end of next week for potential buyers to snap up its remaining stores in the UK and Ireland.

Homebase has appointed administrators to consultancy Teneo after being hit hard by an “incredibly difficult” three years for the DIY sector.

Administrators have agreed a deal to sell the business to retail group CDS, which owns The Range and Wilko, securing the future of 1,600 jobs and 70 stores.

However, the future of another 2,000 workers and the remaining stores hung in the balance.

Administrators have now put 74 Homebase stores on the market for rent.

They set a November 29 deadline for potential suitors to buy the remaining stores, as part of efforts to secure more funds for creditors.

Homebase’s collapse came amid reports that banking giant Wells Fargo refused to extend the group’s loan facility due to concerns about its finances.

The PA news agency has discovered the concerns came as the retailer waited for around £5 million to be returned to it in tax cuts.

Commercial real estate advisor Altus Group, which represented the chain, said more than 50 audits, challenges and appeals against the retailer’s property tax debts were pending at the time of its bankruptcy.

The company was seeking to reduce the overall rateable value of its store portfolio by £5.7m following a 2023 revaluation of its annual business rates bill.

Altus said that if these issues had been resolved before the retailer collapsed, it would have resulted in tax cuts of around £5 million for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years.

Alex Probyn, president of property tax at Altus Group, said: “The appeals process is simply far too slow and ultimately detrimental to cash flow.

“As businesses now face the largest tax increases in three decades, the 2023 tax base must be fixed quickly to ensure that taxpayers not only receive their rebates in a timely manner, but also have confidence that their bills were set fairly.

Homebase and Teneo have been contacted for comment.

Locations of goods placed on the market: