Updated 23rd Sept 2022
Stamp Duty Land Tax (or SDLT) is a tax you pay when purchasing a property or piece of land in England or Northern Ireland (in Wales, there is a similar tax known as the ‘Land Transaction Tax’). The name dates back to the 1600s, where legal documents were embossed with large physical ‘stamps’ – though nowadays it is all dealt with electronically.
The amount of SDLT you pay is calculated based on the full purchase price of the property, and is charged on any transaction regardless of if you are buying with a mortgage or not. The tax payable is worked out upon completion, so will be based on the final amount you pay for the property, subject to any further negotiations you might make following your initial offer.
There are three different rates at which the tax is calculated, which are broken down below. The rate that applies in your case will depend upon your circumstances and our New Business Team are here to help if you are unsure.
An investor has pulled out causing our chain to collapse, what can we do?
The current market and national economy is so uncertain that people may choose to wait and indeed remove their risk by pulling out of the transaction. Although there is no reason not to carry on as normal in terms of the legal process we have to consider slower transaction times or hesitant investors or buyers.
What happens if the house I am buying has quarantined owners in it?
Unfortunately, in this situation the seller will not be able to give vacant possession, which will lead to completion delays. As a preventative measure, as per question 1, we can offer to exchange contracts and complete on the same day, which ensures that contracts are only exchanged if all parties in the chain are able to move on that day, thus reducing the risk to all parties. This can be more stressful so we ask that clients be sensible and accommodating of the situation.