Cut on Duty... YaY!

Stamp duty will be cut for 98% of people who pay it. In George Osborne’s Autumn statement, it was announced that from Thursday 4 December stamp duty will be cut for 98% of people who pay it. What does this mean? Under the old rules if you bought a house for £185,000, you would have had to pay 1% tax on the full amount – a total of £1,850. From tomorrow, under the new rules, for the same property you'll pay nothing on the first £125,000 and 2% on the remaining £60,000. This works out as £1,200, a saving of £650. In Scotland the new rates will apply until 1 April 2015, when the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax replaces stamp duty in Scotland. The new rates of stamp duty are: Purchase price of property (£)  New rates paid on the part of the property price within each tax band   0 - 125,000  0%  125,001 - 250,000  2%  250,001 - 925,000  5%  925,001 - 1,500,000  10%  1,500,001 and over  12% Looking for further advice about what you should be paying? If you are in the process of buying a property, your solicitor or a independent conveyancer will work out the stamp duty you have to pay.