News
Stamp Duty overhaul for Wales
The tax will be changed next year, and most first-time buyers won’t have anything to pay
A new Land Transaction Tax (LTT) will be introduced in Wales next year, replacing the current Stamp Duty system.
And nine in 10 homebuyers will be better off under the new rules, according to the Welsh Government.
The progressive tax regime will support first-time buyers from 1 April 2018, replacing Stamp Duty Land Tax. Under the new rates for LTT, Wales will have the highest starting threshold for the property tax in the UK.
The new residential LTT rates from April 2018
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| £0 – £150,000 | 0% | ||
| £150,000-£250,000 | 2.5% | ||
| £250,000-£400,000 | 5% | ||
| £400,000-£750,000 | 7.5% | ||
| £750,000-£1.5m | 10% | ||
| £1.5m-plus | 12% |
More buyers better off
The Welsh Government said that by increasing the threshold at which the tax is payable, the average first-time buyer will pay no tax at all.
All buyers of residential properties costing up to £400,000 will pay the same or less tax than under Stamp Duty Land Tax and the average homebuyer will pay nearly £500 less tax under the new system.
Higher value properties will attract higher rates of tax. For example, somebody purchasing a £400,001 property in Wales would currently pay 5% Stamp Duty, but this will rise to 7.5% next April under the new LTT rules – an extra £10,000.
Mark Hayward, chief executive of NAEA Propertymark said: “This is a welcome move for the Welsh housing market and we’re pleased the Welsh Government has listened to our proposals to raise the band for this lower rate.
“The rate up to which buyers won’t have to pay any stamp duty will be £150,000 – the same value as the average house price in Wales. This means a huge number of house buyers will no longer have to pay any Stamp Duty at all.
“However, the move creates further bands for properties in excess of £250,000, and those properties will now attract a higher rate of Stamp Duty Land Tax than they would have previously.”
