Stamp Duty relief, what does it mean for buyers?

10th July 2020

Stamp Duty relief, what does it mean for buyers?

 You will have no doubt read about the changes the Government released to Stamp Duty Land Tax this week, in a bid to give our post-lockdown economy another boost the Government, with immediate effect changed the new Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) threshold to £500,000.

This means any buyer purchasing a primary residential property, up to the value of £500,000, will be exempt of paying Stamp Duty until March 2021. Good news for many buyers, however depending on the type of property you are looking to buy you might be still left wondering, do you need to pay and if so, how much? The BBC reported the following;

“If the property purchased is your main home you won't pay any stamp duty on it at all if it costs £500,000 or less.

The next portion of the property's price (£500,001 to £925,000) will be taxed at 5%, and the £575,000 after that (£925,001 to £1.5 million) will be taxed at 10%, the remaining amount (over £1.5 million) will be taxed at 12%.

Before the announcement, stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland was paid on land or property sold for £125,000 or more, while first-time buyers did not pay any stamp duty up to £300,000. But this stamp duty holiday replaces the first-time buyer discount.

Landlords and second home buyers are also eligible for the tax cut but will still have to pay the extra 3% of stamp duty they were charged under the previous rules.” (source bbc.co.uk)


If you are still not sure on how much you will need to pay, you can calculate how much by visiting The Guild of Property Professionals Stamp Duty Calculator  here

 

Peter Gardner, Managing Director, Marchand Petit commented;

“ Clearly we welcome any moves to increase the liquidity of the property market, for both our clients and buyers alike and indeed we have already noticed an uptick in activity and look forward to an active market for the rest of the year.”

For further information about your local market, our teams of Property Negotiators will be happy to help talk through your options and help you understand the new thresholds.

 

Visit www.marchandpetit.co.uk news section for up to date info and for a list of branch contact details.