Section 24 tax relief — my accountant says I'm basically working for free

Year 4 of Section 24 being fully phased in and the numbers are genuinely painful. I have two BTL properties with mortgages. Combined rental income is £24,000/year. Mortgage interest is £14,400/year. Actual profit after all costs: about £4,200.

But HMRC treats the rental income as £24,000 for tax purposes (not the £9,600 after mortgage interest like it used to be). As a higher-rate taxpayer, this pushes my tax bill up massively. The 20% tax credit doesn't compensate for paying 40% on income that doesn't really exist.

My accountant has suggested incorporating but the CGT and stamp duty costs of transferring are prohibitive.

Anyone found a solution? Or are we all just slowly being squeezed out?