Acceptable ways to pay stamp duty

M47

Hello everyone,

So I am just about to complete on a property purchase and had been misinformed previously regarding the way that I could get my stamp duty paid.


 I’m purchasing from a family member and they had agreed to gift me the funds from the funds they receive from the sale.

however it has just come to my attention that the stamp duty fees need to be paid before completion.

Another family member of mine has agreed to gift me the fees. However they would be taking out a loan against their car to do so.

 My question is, would this be an acceptable option? and would they accept this?

housebuyer143

If you are buying from a family member, can you not have them agree to give you the stamp duty as a condition of the sale?
When I sold mine the buyer agreed to pay my ERC so the solicitor sorted it so this was included in the sale money and the buyer transferred more to my solicitor.
Wouldn't it work in reverse so you send less to the seller? I guess it depends how much it is. 

Tiglet2

Not sure why you have started another thread rather than continuing this one. 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6470379/paying-stamp-duty-after-completion#latest

Your solicitor may not ask where the stamp duty funds come from, but if they find out that you've borrowed the money, they will want ID and a Giftor's letter and the lenders approval in place before they can exchange.  Did the solicitor not ask for proof of funds earlier in the transaction?

user1977

Tiglet2 said:

Not sure why you have started another thread rather than continuing this one. 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6470379/paying-stamp-duty-after-completion#latest

Your solicitor may not ask where the stamp duty funds come from, but if they find out that you've borrowed the money, they will want ID and a Giftor's letter and the lenders approval in place before they can exchange. 

Standard lender instructions only require the price to come from the borrower. Though some solicitors may apply the same AML rules to all funds which come to them, so OP needs to ask their solicitor what their requirements would be.

M47

housebuyer143 said:

If you are buying from a family member, can you not have them agree to give you the stamp duty as a condition of the sale?
When I sold mine the buyer agreed to pay my ERC so the solicitor sorted it so this was included in the sale money and the buyer transferred more to my solicitor.
Wouldn't it work in reverse so you send less to the seller? I guess it depends how much it is. 

Thank you for this information I wasn’t aware I could do this. I will definitely see if this is possible 

M47

user1977 said:

Tiglet2 said:

Not sure why you have started another thread rather than continuing this one. 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6470379/paying-stamp-duty-after-completion#latest

Your solicitor may not ask where the stamp duty funds come from, but if they find out that you've borrowed the money, they will want ID and a Giftor's letter and the lenders approval in place before they can exchange. 

Standard lender instructions only require the price to come from the borrower. Though some solicitors may apply the same AML rules to all funds which come to them, so OP needs to ask their solicitor what their requirements would be.

Thank you for your response 

M47

Tiglet2 said:

Not sure why you have started another thread rather than continuing this one. 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6470379/paying-stamp-duty-after-completion#latest

Your solicitor may not ask where the stamp duty funds come from, but if they find out that you've borrowed the money, they will want ID and a Giftor's letter and the lenders approval in place before they can exchange.  Did the solicitor not ask for proof of funds earlier in the transaction?

If I were to sell something of mine to cover the stamp duty. Do you know what, if any evidence I’d need to show? And would the lender need to be notified of this?

user1977

M47 said:

Tiglet2 said:

Not sure why you have started another thread rather than continuing this one. 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6470379/paying-stamp-duty-after-completion#latest

Your solicitor may not ask where the stamp duty funds come from, but if they find out that you've borrowed the money, they will want ID and a Giftor's letter and the lenders approval in place before they can exchange.  Did the solicitor not ask for proof of funds earlier in the transaction?

If I were to sell something of mine to cover the stamp duty. Do you know what, if any evidence I’d need to show? And would the lender need to be notified of this?

Did your lender ask you as part of your application where you were going to find the money for the stamp duty?

As for what evidence you'd need, in relation to your solicitor like I said you would need to ask your solicitor. There is not a standard answer.

M47

No they didn’t ask were im getting the funds for my stamp duty from. I’m purchasing this property using bridging finance and it is secured against the property. 

I changed solicitors at the later stages due to the lender’s requirements and had initially thought that I could be gifted the stamp duty after completion.

user1977

Aside from the solicitor needing to have enough money for the stamp duty before they can complete, you also need to disclose to the lender any "cashback" or similar deal you have with the vendor - as effectively you're reducing the net price that you're paying.

housebuyer143

user1977 said:

Aside from the solicitor needing to have enough money for the stamp duty before they can complete, you also need to disclose to the lender any "cashback" or similar deal you have with the vendor - as effectively you're reducing the net price that you're paying.

Not entirely true. My solicitor didn't tell my lender when the buyer and I agreed for a payment to cover ERCs. 
I think it depends on the situation as you are not lowering the price having the fees paid by someone else.