Stamp Duty threshold increased to £ 175000 for 1 year

[Uncle Spielberg]

ok, if you want to buy up to £ 175k, of not much use to most people down here.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

It may help ftb's get a decent 1 or 2 bed flat or even small house and avoid the stamp duty which will free up, trapped first time sellers but the real problem is not SD but the availability of funds and the high deposits required so in reality it will make very little difference down here.

 

[Titanic]

Surely that will just inflate the prices of properties below £175k? or more likely, stop them falling so fast. It is the falling prices which will make them more affordable, not tinkering with stamp duty which just gives a bit of extra cash to the sellers.

 

[terrymendez]

its a gesture but is it really going to help? Would the £1750 be putting FTB's off buying something anyway? As you say US its the funding that is the issue.

 

[beorhthelm]

should be abolished, its a stupid antiquated tax anyway.

 

[larus]

IMO, this tax should be staggered.
1% up to £250k.
3% on anything above £250k (but still only 1% on the amount below £250k).
4% on the amount over £400k.

I.e, the same basis as Income Tax.

 

[Badger]

If stamp duty had gone up in line with house price rises then it should probably be at about £300k +

 

[dannyboy]

hey US i got a complicated question re house buying can i pm you with it

 

[Seagull over NZ]

IMO, this tax should be staggered.
1% up to £250k.
3% on anything above £250k (but still only 1% on the amount below £250k).
4% on the amount over £400k.

I.e, the same basis as Income Tax.

I'm all for a progressive tax system that taxes higher income earners higher taxes but staggering the stamp duty just highlights that the SD is a nonsense tax, the money that is buying the house has already been taxed once.

Just like inheritance tax, the governement getting two bites at the cherry.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

hey US i got a complicated question re house buying can i pm you with it

sure

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

what of course will also happen is that there will be no properties on the market from £ 175k - £ 200k and those on the market now at £ 180k or £ 185k will have to reassess their prices as people will try and chip them to £ 175k

 

[dannyboy]

your inbox is full US

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

IMO, this tax should be staggered.
1% up to £250k.
3% on anything above £250k (but still only 1% on the amount below £250k).
4% on the amount over £400k.

I.e, the same basis as Income Tax.

Agreed , although I would suggest different ceiling levels
1% up to £350k
3% £350k up to £700k
4% £700k up to £1.2M
5% Top rate paid over £1.2M without staggering so the 5% stamp duty is applied to sale price.

 

[larus]

Agreed , although I would suggest different ceiling levels
1% up to £350k
3% £350k up to £700k
4% £700k up to £1.2M
5% Top rate paid over £1.2M without staggering so the 5% stamp duty is applied to sale price.

I agree that the bands should be different. I was just trying to emphasise that it should be staggered. Wouldn't disagree with the bands/rates either, except that I think the 5% band should still be staggered, after all, the money has (hopefully), already been taxed once.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

For what it's worth ...

In England and Wales, of the 1,149,388 sales in the 12 months to June 2008, almost half of them – 569,747 – were under £175,000.

In Scotland, in the year to the end of March 2008, there were 104,794 house sales of up to £175,000. Of these, 40,891 were above £125,000 and would have been exempted from stamp duty under the new rules.

 

[Gully]

what of course will also happen is that there will be no properties on the market from £ 175k - £ 200k and those on the market now at £ 180k or £ 185k will have to reassess their prices as people will try and chip them to £ 175k

I am guessing that there will be a glut of properties exchanging at £174,999. How about that old myth of agreeing to buy the house for an amount below a stamp duty threshold and then paying for fixtures and fittings separately, is that an urban myth or is it possible?

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

its a loophole the government are trying to clamp down on and most solicitors are wary of it. I can see more likely a property at £ 185k agreed the vendors will offer to pay the stamp duty.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

I'm all for a progressive tax system that taxes higher income earners higher taxes but staggering the stamp duty just highlights that the SD is a nonsense tax, the money that is buying the house has already been taxed once.

Just like inheritance tax, the governement getting two bites at the cherry.

Stamp duty is no different than vat, it's a sales tax.

Inheritance tax differs because it's often taxing "unearned" income, ie the profit on increases in the value of assets, which have never been taxed.