Stamp Duty 'should be priority' in Labour Budget as homebuyers pay £1bn in June
The Stamp Duty nil-rate threshold is due to halve in March 2025, which will add thousands to homebuyers' bills.
The Government is being urged to prioritise Stamp Duty in the next Budget following data that showed homebuyers have collectively shelled out billions of pounds on the tax in the last few months.
The latest figures from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) revealed Britons paid £4.2billion in Stamp Duty between April and June 2024, which is £500million higher than the same period last year. More than £1billion was paid in June alone.
Currently, Stamp Duty is a levy charged on homes costing more than £250,000.
This nil-rate threshold is set to be reduced back to £125,000 in March 2025, increasing the tax bill on an average-priced home in England from £2,619 to £5,119.
First-time buyers currently pay Stamp Duty if their home costs more than £425,000, which is set to drop to £300,000 in March, too.
Jonathan Stinton, head of mortgage relations at Coventry Building Society, said: "The new Government has been fairly mute on Stamp Duty so far, but silence definitely isn’t golden when it could end up costing homebuyers thousands of pounds in extra tax.
"If we don’t hear anything between now and next April, those looking to buy an average-priced home will have to fork out an additional £2,500 in property tax.
"The next Budget could be as early as September, and that’s when we really want to see the new Chancellor set out an ambitious, long-term plan for property tax that will give certainty to anyone thinking of buying or selling a home.”
Mr Stinton noted there are only eight months left until temporary thresholds for property tax will halve to just £125,000, leaving all but a few buyers “facing bigger up-front tax bills”.
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He added: "That April deadline carries a risk of property market distortion.
"Within the next few months, buyers will be increasingly likely to rush through purchases to avoid a hefty tax hike, causing a flurry of activity followed by a sharp drop after the relief has ended."
However, Mr Stinton noted: "This swell and burst effect isn’t going to help build long-term stability in the market, so Stamp Duty should be high on the Chancellor’s priority list when preparing for the next Budget."
