Stamp duty threshold being raised today...

ds1980

Never told you you couldn't but what good would it do because you ain't never going to change anything. It's like when you shout at the ref for a penalty when your watching the telly (go on admit it)! He can't hear you!

Work harder, pay more tax, save more im afraid is the only way round your plight.

morg_monster

ds1980 wrote: »

Say a typical ftb house is worth £125-£150k thats only £1250-£1500 more than if under £125k

If someone can't afford £1250-£1500 they shouldn't be buying a house in the first place. Raising the threshold will do nothing but inflate prices above ftb's so they can't move up the ladder so its all a bit pointless really.

Its a fact of life just like any other tax get over it.

I totally disagree with that! The thing that most people have against stamp duty is not that they have to pay it in the first place, but that it hasn't kept pace with the crazy increases in house prices over the last decade, since the higher thresholds at least were set!! Personally I am more worried about the second threshold, where it jumps from 1% to 3%, at 250,000. So from £2500, to £7500!!! That is a lot of extra money to find. This threshold was set in July 1997, where it would have bought you A LOT of house. Now, it buys you a lot less, especially when you look at London and the SE. In some parts of london, 250000 will buy you a 2 bed flat. In many parts it will get you a 1 bed flat at the most. IE many ftbs wanting to live in london or the home counties will be looking at spending around this level.

I have read in several different places that if the £250,000 threshold had increased in line with house prices it would now be at £680,000!!! I think that the stamp duty levels should have increased in line with house prices. Or to be changed so that it is charged as a percentage of the amount above the threshold - so a house sold for £250,001 doesn't attract three times the stamp duty of a house sold for £250,000.

I welcome ds1980 to argue how either of these options wouldn't be fair?!

Look at how stamp duty percentages have increased under new labour, this is really shocking, in May 1997 when labour came into power it was 1% on any house over £60,000. Then Gordon got his hands on things...

In July 1997, stamp duty increased to 1.5% on properties between £250,000 and £500,000. Over £500,000 increased to 2%.

In March 1998, stamp duty increased to 2% on properties between £250,000 and £500,000. Over £500,000 increased to 3%.

In March 1999, stamp duty increased to 2.5% on properties between £250,000 and £500,000. Over £500,000 increased to 3.5%.

In March 2000, stamp duty increased to 3% on properties between £250,000 and £500,000. Over £500,000 increased to 4%.

Although under NL the nil threshold has been raised to £60,000 in 2003 - and then to £125,000 in 2006.

What is the big deal with going from £250,000 to £250,001 that it needs a TRIPLING in the tax? its ridiculous!:mad:
You say work harder, save harder etc - but when FTB houses are so far out of so many FTB's reach - how can they work/save hard enough to ever catch up?!! All I'm asking for is that the chancellor would make things a bit fairer and give us current wannabe FTBs the same chances that people had a decade ago (IE, buying a house without a chunk of their deposit being swallowed up by stamp duty).

And yes, I'm well aware that I sound like a petulant child "IT'S NOT FAIR" - but I really don't think it is!

Bf109

ginvzt wrote: »

So that is it then - unless you have a shared ownership you will have to pay stamp duty on anything above £125k. Pity, as raising this level to £150k would given market a boost, in my opinion.

Just as well they didnt do that then as that would have made houses more expensive

Lotus-eater

Bf109 wrote: »

Just as well they didnt do that then as that would have made houses more expensive

I was thinking that, the last thing the market needs is a boost.

lostinrates

morg_monster wrote: »

In some parts of london, 250000 will buy you a 2 bed flat. In many parts it will get you a 1 bed flat at the most. IE many ftbs wanting to live in london or the home counties will be looking at spending around this level.

Nothing sensible to say, but I did, a few years ago see a flat in London measuring 10 feet by 8 feet, yep, the WHOLE FLAT, for £250,000 with a 75 year lease. Of course one can't expect to but a nice flat in the best area, but if you could afford a flat with, say, enough room to warrent at least one internal door, , in a less fashionable area WHO would buy a room, and not an overly large room at that? Anyway, someone did...which of course, ultimately, pushes the prices up for people in the less salubrious areas.

Sorry....going on a bit.:o