Stamp Duty Changes: About to exchange

bailey_stu

Hi,

I know I cant get a definite answer but looking for opinions. I'm about to exchange contracts on a house £665k which gives me a stamp duty outlay of about 23k.

With all the talk of reforms in the budget, would it be a good idea to complete on the 7th November?

I would expect if there was a cut in stamp duty then they would need to keep some kind of scale and I would think it would happen immediately to not completely stall a troubled market till April.

Thanks

Bluntman_1983

I can't answer the question but can offer sympathies as I'm in a very similar situation. We're very close to exchanging (just one transaction below us that needs to catch up - everyone else is ready) and our purchase is £545k so stamp duty of £17k(ish).

Due to delays in our process a part of me just wants to get on with it and accept any completion date just get it all over the line - we've budgeted for the stamp duty so it's not like we're any worse off. On the other hand, it would be a bit of a sickener to find that if we'd waited a week we'd have saved many thousands!

Been wrestling with it a while now, but (maybe fortunately, I don't know) the delays with our buyer's sale now mean that completion before the 6th is looking less likely anyway!

The problems I have with deliberately inserting delays are:

1) We don't know that the Chancellor will actually reduce stamp duty in this budget.
2) Even if he did, we don't know that it will be immediate effect (I agree with your logic but if politics has taught us anything recently it's that logic counts for very little).
3) We don't even know that they will hold the budget on the 6th - would be delayed if 'no-deal' for instance...
4) We actually don't know whether the current Government will still be in place come the 6th November, in which case there won't be a budget at all!

I still genuinely don't know what I'd say if my solicitor phoned me up this afternoon and said everyone is ready and completion date proposed is 1st Nov...

pinkteapot

We're having the same thoughts as we're exchanging any day now on a new-build with completion likely to be around the end of October. There was talk at one point of stamp duty being abolished on purchases up to £500k and we're buying just under that.

You'll know by Sunday if that budget on 6 November is happening. They've said that the budget will only go ahead if we Brexit on 31 October. If we don't, it's just going to be an economic statement. My money's on no Brexit and therefore no budget. But anyway, if the MPs don't agree to a deal on Saturday then Brexit's delayed again.

Having all the same thoughts as Bluntman above though!

If there is a budget, they'll want to do a load of populist stuff as the govt is so deeply unpopular at the moment, and a stamp duty cut is always a good one. On the other hand, if we're Brexiting the economy's f'ed so they don't really have any money to play with and stamp duty brings in huge sums.

Just think - the stamp duty the three of us are paying probably covers the cost of the Brexit negotiating team for at least a second...

davidmcn

Bluntman_1983 wrote: »

2) Even if he did, we don't know that it will be immediate effect (I agree with your logic but if politics has taught us anything recently it's that logic counts for very little).

It almost certainly would be, as that's what usually happens with stamp duty changes (subject to transitional arrangements so those already stuck in a contract aren't disadvantaged), but as you say there are no promises.

The betting markets still assume no Brexit of any sort on 31 October, for what that's worth.

pinkteapot

davidmcn wrote: »

It almost certainly would be, as that's what usually happens with stamp duty changes (subject to transitional arrangements so those already stuck in a contract aren't disadvantaged), but as you say there are no promises.

Yeah - I can't see them announcing changes that take effect later because it would completely freeze the housing market and cause chaos.

AdrianC

bailey_stu wrote: »

With all the talk of reforms in the budget, would it be a good idea to complete on the 7th November?

Sajid Javid is the only person that can answer that, and he's not saying.

And that, of course, is if he's still in the job on 7th Nov. I wouldn't put money on that.

Bluntman_1983

pinkteapot wrote: »

You'll know by Sunday if that budget on 6 November is happening. They've said that the budget will only go ahead if we Brexit on 31 October. If we don't, it's just going to be an economic statement.

Hmm... FT article suggests that budget will be delayed in the event of no deal, but it will go ahead in the event of an extension. However, by his own words Boris will be "dead in a ditch" in those circumstances so who knows!

Bluntman_1983

pinkteapot wrote: »

Just think - the stamp duty the three of us are paying probably covers the cost of the Brexit negotiating team for at least a second...

We could have a hell of a party between us if we can make a saving! :beer:

Halfie

We’re another about to exchange and completion date suggested as 1st November. Although our stamp duty would be £4K which is a lot less than the figures here I’d be loathe to lose it unnecessarily. I pay enough to the tax man as it is!

Tom99

When the changes happened in Dec 2014, if you had already exchanged contracts you could choose whether to pay tax under the old or new formula.

Bluntman_1983

What did you guys decide to do in the end?

We still haven't exchanged (not by choice - slow solicitors down the chain). Hoping to do so in the next week - completion almost certainly after 6 November now.

Obviously Boris didn't get his Br*xit timetable through but Sajid Javid said yesterday that the budget "will still go ahead on the 6th November" and would only be postponed if 'no deal' on 31st Oct, which now seems unlikely. Of course calling an election would kill it off completely!

Wish Sajid & Boris had never said anything about prospective stamp duty changes, then frankly I wouldn't give too much of a hoot about the budget and I'd be able to concentrate on just being angry about Br*xit and slow solicitors!