Introduced in July 2020, the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) Holiday has helped hundreds of homeowners and investors to reduce the cost of purchasing a new property.
However, the higher SDLT thresholds will change from 1 July increasing the cost of buying or transferring a home.
From the beginning of July, the SDLT rules will change so that the threshold at which tax is paid falls from £500,000 to £250,000.
This new rate of SDLT will remain in place until 1 October 2021, when it will fall again to just £125,000.
The new rates will be as follows:
| Property or lease premium or transfer value from 1 July | SDLT rate |
| Up to £250,000 | 0 per cent |
| The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000) | 5 per cent |
| The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million) | 10 per cent |
| The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million) | 12 per cent |
| Property or lease premium or transfer value from 1 October | SDLT rate |
| Up to £125,000 | 0 per cent |
| The next £125,000 (the portion from £125,001 to £250,000) | 2 per cent |
| The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000) | 5 per cent |
| The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million) | 10 per cent |
| The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million) | 12 per cent |
Despite the changes, first-time buyers paying £300,000 or less for a residential property will continue to pay no SDLT and will only pay five per cent on properties worth between £300,000 and £500,000.
The latest changes are likely to subdue the market somewhat, as they will increase the costs of most transactions, especially given that the average UK house price in April 2021 was £251,000 according to the Office for National Statistics.
For landlords and investors, the impact will be far greater as they must pay an additional three per cent surcharge on each rate if they own more than one property already.
The costs could be even greater if the investor is non-resident in the UK due to the new two per cent surcharge for overseas buyers of UK property that has been introduced from April on top of the existing three per cent additional home surcharge.
For them, from 1 July, they could pay the following rates on property purchases or transfers if they already own a property in the UK:
| Property or lease premium or transfer value from 1 July | SDLT rate |
| Up to £250,000 | 5 per cent |
| The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000) | 10 per cent |
| The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million) | 15 per cent |
| The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million) | 17 per cent |
Homebuyers, landlords and property investors need to carefully consider these changes as they could have a substantial impact on property values.
If you need advice on the upcoming changes to SDLT, please speak to a member of our team.
