During the Summer Economic Update, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced that from 8 July the stamp duty threshold will temporarily be raised from £125,000 to £500,000, a step taken to boost the property market in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This means there is no longer a requirement to pay stamp duty on property priced at £500,000 or below when purchasing a home. These changes will start with immediate effect and remain in place until 31 March 2021, therefore those who are already in the process of buying a property will also benefit.
This measure is described as a way to allow people to feel confident to buy, to sell, to renovate, and to improve their homes and increase activity in the property market.
What does this mean?
These new measures mean you could potentially save thousands of pounds, which can instead be used as additional funds towards a deposit or to spend renovating your property once you’ve moved in.
For first-time buyers, the threshold was already set at £300,000, instead of the usual £125,000 paid by those moving to their second or subsequent home, meaning this group are less likely to be impacted by the stamp duty holiday, unless buying a first home over £300,000.
Those purchasing a home just below the threshold at £500,000 would save a total of £15,000, whereas a house priced at £200,000, would save £1,500.
This is expected to boost the wider economy, as £3.8 billion saved by buyers can be invested in other areas, such as home improvements and furniture.
This is positive news for anyone on the fence about moving home. If you are considering selling your property following the announcement, contact us on 01422 380100.