apparently stamp duty has changed. By my maths, if you're under £500k purchases you're better off. Over £500k worse off with no real change at £500k itself.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/business-30249297
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-30291460
edit: My maths was a little out. The above is true in that no real change at £500k, or the £250k threshold, but the tipping point is more like £1m beyond which you are definitely worse off.
Last edited by ik9000; 03-12-2014 at 11:44 PM.
old rates (flat rate based on total sale value) source http://www.theguardian.com/money/201...-duty-land-tax
• £125,000 – £250,000 = 1%
• £250,001 – £500,000 = 3%
• £500,001 – £1m = 4%
• £1m – £2m = 5%
• More than £2m = 7%
New rates (see 13:26 post in the BBC timeline, link as above)
Mr Osborne spelled out the new stamp duty rates.
No tax on the first £125,000 paid
2% on the portion up to £250,000
5% up to £925,000
10% up to £1.5 million
12% on everything above that.
He said:"As a result stamp duty will be cut for the 98% of homebuyers who pay it."
+ Will help some first time buyers onto the ladder. Bit of pre-election PR and it helps keep the housing market buoyant.
- The last crash was largely fuelled by a housing market bubble. I'm not convinced this isn't trying to reinflate that bubble again.
Millennium (10-12-2014)
More progressive. Better IMHO. Takes a chunk out of opposition points.
Don't think it's going to have much material affect on buying or selling though.
Millennium (10-12-2014)
I think that takes the system from WTF to merely stupid.
In the past I have been put off moving closer to my job because of the costs of selling up and moving. It really is eye watering amounts of money. Stamp duty was a very significant slice of that. Coming up with thousands, even adding it to the mortgage, is hard. So you keep buying petrol and commuting. I probably did 8K miles per year more than necessary for 15 years. If I cost that at 20p/mile (because I could only afford to do that by driving old cars), that is about £24K spent over that time. That is more than the cost of moving house, but moving house is an up front cost and commuting is pay as you go. It is like a debt trap. During all those hours on the road, you can see people driving the other way. Some of them are doing roughly the opposite commute to you.
Just scrap the damned tax, please. I might never move again so it isn't something I would gain from, but for the sake of humanity empty our roads and cut our carbon emissions by letting people move to where they work.
Trouble is, Dances, governments have to get tax from somewhere, and if they scrap this, something else has to go up to compensate. What?
After all, ANYBODY buying a house is relatively affluent, compared to a lot of people, that can't afford to buy with or without SDLT.
Sure, this adds a large chunk of cash to the cost of the process, exactly at a time when most people can least afford it. But, roll it into the cost of the house, buy with a view to a long-term home, and it becomes pretty irrelevant for most people, I.e. sub £250k, because it's a one-off cost over many years of ownership. You just have to factor it in to the total purchase cost of the property, and forget about it.
As for the change, a considerable improvement over the old slab system, IMHO.
Millennium (10-12-2014)
Some quick charts comparing the rates (approximate, disclaimer, not thoroughly checked, use at your own risk, I accept no responsibility for errors or omissions etc)
full chart here: http://postimg.org/image/ycvj2h42z/
Worse than that, if people stopped commuting so far then they wouldn't pay all that petrol duty so government would be hit twice. People might be happier, less stressed and so less likely to need medical treatment, spend less time in cars so probably getting more exercise. But happiness doesn't pay the taxes.Originally Posted by Saracen
We have lots of housing problems in this country. Affordable first housing, affluent people buying second homes in rural/coastal areas that are empty most of the year driving out the locals. People forced to rent because they can't find a house to buy because all the houses are bought by people who are buying to let so they are only available to rent. Rents are stupidly expensive too.
I just want to know, what does stamp duty solve?
what does it solve? nothing in itself. But it is a form of tax on transactions, just as VAT is for buying goods. Any reduction in stamp is welcome however. It means you need less deposit to buy - a real help for first time buyers. This could save me between £1-2k depending how much I eventually end up having to pay. that is a new fridge freezer, oven and dishwasher (in the sales)
and for once it is the rich who are hit by the change. Look at the difference collected on 2m+ property values
Millennium (10-12-2014)
Wonderful news. My other half and I are in the process of buying a new place and our stamp duty bill has just dropped by over £3k. Nice.
Millennium (10-12-2014)
If it causes an increase in market activity, then the reduction in average stamp duty could be balanced out by increased volume?
Its also (IMHO) partly a sop to the 'mansion tax' idea cobbled up by Ed Balls - up, in his ivory tower.
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It's a smart move. Now, tell the NIMBYs in this country where to go and start building more houses.
I say this as a home owner that stands to lose out if they build enough houses.
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One thing's for sure, the old system was ridiculous. Having a system that causes a property £1 more expensive than another cost an extra £5,000 in tax was insane.
And given that the vast majority will benefit from reduced rates (myself included), whilst those that can afford to take the hit will pay more... yeah, I'm happy with that.
Millennium (10-12-2014)
it's not nimbys. It's dumb ass councils preventing readily developed BROWNFIELD sites currently full of derelict office buildings from being redeveloped because they don't want to lose "commercial areas" despite the fact no-one is using them anyway. I could show you several places around London within the tube zones where large scale developments could go, but councils are blocking them. It is also the farce of letting people buying for "investment" be that overseas investors or buy to let maniacs ahead of normal people who just want somewhere to live. In a housing shortage there ought to be a priority system to home grown buyers who are paying their taxes over rich foreigners pricing everybody else out.
Millennium (10-12-2014)
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