Chancellor announces Stamp Duty Land Tax holiday

The Chancellor’s announcement of a holiday on Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) has been welcomed by home buyers, many of who have found the current economic situation difficult.

Mortgage lenders have been cautious with high ‘loan to value’ transactions and the announcement will benefit the movement of the housing market in the UK.

The housing market was frozen during lockdown and as restrictions ease, it is hoped this change will boost the market. The government announced that the holiday period for tax will be immediate and run until 31 March 2021.

If you purchase a residential property between 8 July 2020 to 31 March 2021, you only start to pay SDLT on the amount that you pay for the property above £500,000. These rates apply whether you are buying your first home or have owned property before. If you would like to work out the SDLT payable, visit the Government’s website.

It is believed that the change will not include the purchase of second homes and additional properties, which are not going to be a main residence. These properties will attract a 3% surcharge rising to 15% on the most expensive properties, as usual. However, buy-to-letters will welcome the measure, as they will still be able to reduce their SDLT bill by more than a third in most cases.

Only those purchases made after 8 July 2020 will be eligible, and transactions made after this date which have a legal binding agreement will benefit from the tax holiday.

Find out more

If you require more information on Stamp Duty Land Tax or anything else related to buying or selling a property, please get in touch with our Residential Property team.

This content is correct at time of publication