Swapping houses

Sterlingtimes

I am substantially older than my wife.

When I die, could my wife "swap" her £700k house for my son's £350k house without immediate tax implications? I am aware that IHT may come into play in due course, but how about stamp duty?

I am thinking that my son would gift his house to my wife, and my wife would gift her house to him. Both houses are mortgage-free. Presumably, each party would reregister with the Land Registry. Both my son and my wife would move to their new homes.

Would my wife retain our combined IHT residential property allowance?

eskbanker

Stamp duty would be payable on the valuation of each property at the time of exchanging....

Mark_d

Stamp duty is not payable as there is no mortgage
https://www.ukpropertyaccountants.co.uk/understanding-stamp-duty-on-gifted-property/

Keep_pedalling

If the home currently owned jointly? What is the combined net worth of you and your wife. 

When you say swap is that just ownership or will they move into each others house as well?

eskbanker

Keep_pedalling said:

When you say swap is that just ownership or will they move into each others house as well?

From OP:  

Sterlingtimes said:

Both my son and my wife would move to their new homes.

TheGreenFrog

Sterlingtimes said:

I am substantially older than my wife.

When I die, could my wife "swap" her £700k house for my son's £350k house without immediate tax implications? I am aware that IHT may come into play in due course, but how about stamp duty?

I am thinking that my son would gift his house to my wife, and my wife would gift her house to him. Both houses are mortgage-free. Presumably, each party would reregister with the Land Registry. Both my son and my wife would move to their new homes.

Would my wife retain our combined IHT residential property allowance?

The difficulty from a stamp duty perspective is that there are not two separate gifts - there is an exchange.  Going back decades stamp duty was not chargeable on exchanges of land, but that loophole was closed a very long time ago.  I agree with @eskbanker although there is devil in the detail.

https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/stamp-duty-land-tax-manual/sdltm04020a

sheramber

https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/stamp-duty-land-tax-manual/sdltm04020a