First-time Buyers
First-time buyers have saved £426m in Stamp Duty since it was scrapped a year ago
This week marks a year since the government introduced First Time Buyer Relief on Stamp Duty, which it extended this month to those buying through shared ownership schemes
More than 180,500 first-time buyers have saved a total of £426m through First Time Buyers Relief, according to HM Revenue and Customs.
The tax relief was introduced on 22 November 2017, and was last month extended to first-time buyers purchasing through approved shared ownership schemes in the Budget.
Mel Stride MP, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said: “These statistics show that the government was right to offer a helping hand to first-time buyers. Without this investment, more than 180,500 new homeowners may have struggled to get onto the property ladder. Maintaining the status quo was not an option.”
How does it work?
First Time Buyers Relief is a Stamp Duty relief for eligible first-time buyers. It can be used when buying a residential property where the purchase price is no more than £500,000 in England and Northern Ireland, as long as the purchaser does not own any other properties and intends to use it as their main residence.
Where the purchase price is between £300,000 and £500,000, SDLT at 5% is due on the amount above £300,000. For example, a property purchased for £450,000 would pay £7,500 SDLT (5% of £150,000). This gives a saving of up to £5,000 for each first time buyer.
The relief was claimed in more than 58,800 transactions between July and September this year, an increase of 12% compared to the previous quarter.
