Budget brings no Stampt Duty relief
by Gill Montia
Today’s Budget will be a disappointment for potential first-time buyers hoping for changes in Stamp Duty tax bands.
The price of the average UK home has increased to a point where the majority of first-time buyers pay Stamp Duty at 1% (purchases above £125,000), while the number of properties in the higher bands has also risen dramatically in the past five years.
The current £250,001 and £500,001 Stamp Duty bands have been in place since July 1997, since when the percentage charged on properties in the £250,001 to £500,000 band has doubled from 1.5% to 3%. For properties above £500,000 it has doubled from 2% to 4%.
However, an estimated 95,000 people who will have an opportunity to purchase their first home through a shared equity schemes will not be required to pay the duty until they own 80% of the equity in their homes.
In addition shared-equity applicants will no longer need to raise three-quarters of the cost of a property, as the threshold has been lowered to 50%.
In his Budget speech, Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling, also announced that 70,000 new homes would be built on public land in 2008, in addition to the 40,000 already under construction.
Discuss this in the Finance Markets forums
Story link: Budget brings no Stampt Duty relief
Add to Bookmarks:
Related financial stories to: Budget brings no Stampt Duty relief
- Minimal takeup of green stamp duty relief
- Stamp duty for southern first-time buyers exceeds £7,500
- First-time buyer stamp duty doubles in five years
- Homeburyers pay £6.5bn in stamp duty
- Rising house prices mean more income from stamp duty
- Stamp duty revenues rise 60% in five years
- Stamp duty applies regional penalties
- Londoners contribute 27% of UK stamp duty revenues
- Chancellor ponders stamp duty suspension
- Stamp Duty suspended for purchases under £175,000
Previous: « Fixed-rate mortgages retain popularity
Next: Car and drink tax increased in 2008 budget »
Visited 1328 times, 1 so far today
