Rightmove calls for stamp duty extension

Buyers who miss the March stamp duty deadline should be granted an extension, according to property portal Rightmove.

Some 74,000 home-movers in England are expected to miss the stamp duty deadline and complete in April instead, including 25,000 first-time buyers, Rightmove predicted.

After March 31 the minimum threshold will fall from £425,000 to £300,000 for first-time buyers, or from £250,000 to £125,000 for the rest.

Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property market expert said: “We expect a rush to complete close to March 31st as first-time buyers and home-movers try to avoid paying extra in tax.

“Our numbers show how there is a relatively small, but disproportionately impacted group of first-time buyers who will be caught out by the changing thresholds, highlighting some disparities in the way the current system works.

“With 74,000 people only just set to miss the deadline, in part because of the extremely lengthy completion times in England, we think it would make sense to grant a short extension to the deadline and help these movers, rather than have them face higher charges when they complete later in April.”

At a regional level, buyers in the South East are set to be most impacted, with the highest number of movers from the region set to only just miss out on the stamp duty deadline, and complete later in April.

With the South East being the second highest-priced region for homes, this group is likely to face greater costs.

An average home-mover in England will face an extra £2,500 in stamp duty costs from 1st April.

First-time buyers of homes priced between £500,001 and £625,000 are the most affected group of all, facing an extra £11,250 in costs.

Via @PropertyWire