Reposted from The Times: Mortgage and Property - Stamp Duty
An overview of Stamp Duty Fees from The Times – view the original article here
There are calls for stamp duty to be doubled for landlords in the March budget to help younger generations buy amid rising interest rates and high inflation.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation said despite a predicted fall this year, house prices are unlikely to reset to affordable levels, leaving investors snapping up properties.
The current cut on stamp duty – the tax you pay when you buy property in the UK – will be reversed from April 2025.
Read on to find out the most important things you need to know...
What changes have been made to stamp duty?
The minimum cost of a property on which homebuyers pay stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland has been raised from £125,000 to £250,000. For first-time buyers, this figure has increased from £300,000 to £425,000.
Previously, first-time buyers would only benefit from different stamp duty rates if the cost of the property they were buying was £500,000 or less. This amount has now increased to £625,000. If first-time buyers are purchasing a property greater than £625,000, they will pay the standard stamp duty rates.
This means first-time buyers could save a maximum of £6,250 on the purchase of their home, while everybody else could save up to £2,500.
These changes will make it more affordable for people to move house, and make it easier for many first-time buyers to get on the housing ladder.
However, from 31 March 2025, all of September’s changes to stamp duty will be reversed, with them essentially becoming a stamp duty holiday rather than a permanent change. This means the cost of a property on which you start paying council tax will revert to £125,000 from £250,000, and to £300,000 from £425,000 for first-time buyers.