Acceptable ways to pay stamp duty

user1977

housebuyer143 said:

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.

Your solicitor should have told the lender about it, given that the standard instructions to solicitors say:

"6.4.4 You must tell us (unless we say differently in part 2) if the contract provides for or you become aware of any arrangement in which there is:

• a cashback to the buyer; or
• part of the price is being satisfied by a non-cash incentive to the buyer or
• any indirect incentive (cash or non cash) or rental guarantee.

Any such arrangement may lead to the mortgage offer being withdrawn or amended."

So if they failed to do that, what else did they fail to do?

M47

If it says on guideline websites that I have 14 days to pay stamp duty after completion, surely my solicitor can help arrange this, and why would the lender have an issue with this if they haven’t brought this up at all. Surely as long as it’s paid within time this shouldn’t be an issue 

SDLT_Geek

M47 said:

If it says on guideline websites that I have 14 days to pay stamp duty after completion, surely my solicitor can help arrange this, and why would the lender have an issue with this if they haven’t brought this up at all. Surely as long as it’s paid within time this shouldn’t be an issue 

As has been said before, it is a standard lenders requirement that the solicitors hold enough SDLT at completion.

user1977

M47 said:

If it says on guideline websites that I have 14 days to pay stamp duty after completion, surely my solicitor can help arrange this, and why would the lender have an issue with this if they haven’t brought this up at all. Surely as long as it’s paid within time this shouldn’t be an issue 

They have brought it up - it's part of the standard instructions which they issue to the solicitor.

M47

I will have to check on Monday, but do you think it’s likely that the lender will allow the seller to (give cash back) gift me the stamp duty costs, right after completion out of the sale funds ?

Tiglet2

M47 said:

I will have to check on Monday, but do you think it’s likely that the lender will allow the seller to (give cash back) gift me the stamp duty costs, right after completion out of the sale funds ?

I think it will be unlikely unfortunately.

user1977

M47 said:

I will have to check on Monday, but do you think it’s likely that the lender will allow the seller to (give cash back) gift me the stamp duty costs, right after completion out of the sale funds ?

No.

The lender needs to know that their security can be registered, which in turn needs your title to be registered, which in turn needs the stamp duty to be paid. So the solicitor needs to be in control of all of that, including actually having the stamp duty - not just hoping that somebody is going to pay it to them after completion.