The Stamp Duty Holiday

The Stamp Duty Holiday - What you need to know

What is The Stamp Duty Holiday?

Usually Stamp Duty tax is payable on property transactions worth more than £125,000 (£300,000 for first time buyers), however on the 8th July 2020 The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a temporary break from this, reducing Stamp Duty Tax down to 0% for all transactions below £500,000. This has saved purchasers thousands over the last few months and propped up the housing market throughout the pandemic. For example, on a property worth £400,000, a purchaser will have saved £10,000 in stamp duty that they would previously have been liable to pay.

 

Is it too late to take advantage of this offer?

If you are looking to buy a property, now is the perfect time with the potential savings running into the tens of thousands. With the average property purchase taking 12 weeks to go through and the deadline for the holiday coming on 31st March 2020, potential buyers should hope to be in the purchasing process by the start of January.

What if I have a property to sell too?

This can take longer, with the average property taking 6 months to sell from putting on the market, which takes us past the 31st March deadline. That doesn’t mean its impossible though. If you use a proactive estate agent and get your property on the market quickly, with a realistic valuation as well as ensuring all paperwork is in place for the conveyancing team – you stand a reasonable chance of being able to take advantage of this saving, especially with the added interest from your potential purchasers wanting to work to this deadline too.