Stamp Duty Holiday will NOT be extended

Published 16th December 2020

The government has announced there will be no extension of
the current stamp duty holiday. They confirmed the planned deadline of 31 March
2020 will be the final day of the tax break. After this date, homebuyers will
face additional costs, disappointing many across England and Northern Ireland.

After a petition was launched on the official parliament
website, many were hopeful for an extension or tapering of the proposed
deadline. The petition, which has over 23,000 signatures at the time of
writing, called for a six-month extension of the deadline. It suggests that
helping purchases benefit from the stamp duty holiday, would stabilise the
housing market.

The Treasury responded:

“The government does not plan to extend this temporary
relief.

“To stimulate immediate momentum in the property market and
to support the jobs of people whose employment relied on custom from the
property industry, the government decided to introduce a temporary Stamp Duty
Land Tax (SDLT) relief.

“This relief increased the starting threshold of residential
SDLT from £125,000 to £500,000 from the 8 July 2020 until 31 March 2021. Since
the relief was introduced, transactions have increased and seasonally adjusted
data shows that in October 2020, transactions were 8% higher than in October
2019.

“As the relief was to provide an immediate stimulus to the
property market, the government does not plan to extend this relief. SDLT is an
important source of government revenue, raising several billion pounds each
year to help pay for the essential services the government provides.”

Next steps

Signatories have been left disappointed with the response
from the government, while industry professionals face the backlog of cases to
push through. As the market continues to react to the news, many are still
calling on the government to reconsider. Buyers are being advised to act fast
in order to benefit from the savings afforded by the stamp duty holiday.

How can Home Legal Direct help?

Home Legal Direct is here to support you on your property
journey. If you are looking to benefit from the stamp duty land tax holiday
before the deadline, you need to move quickly. Instructing a conveyancer as
soon as possible is a great way of improving your chance of completing in time.
Contact us today to find out how we can help you!