| Stamp duty axed on homes worth £175,000 or less |
|
| Tuesday, 02 September 2008 | |
|
Properties worth up to £175,000 will be exempt from stamp duty tax for 12 months, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has today announced.
From tomorrow the level at which the 1% purchase tax has to be paid is to be increased from £125,000. It is part of the £1bn housing package announced by the government today which is aimed at helping the struggling housing market. Based on a £175,000 valuation figure the move will save buyers up to £1,750 when they purchase a house - from the temporary raising of the current threshold from £125,000 to £175,000. It is expected to cost the Exchequer around half a billion pounds over the year. Recent house price figures from Nationwide Building Society put the average cost of a home in the UK at £164,654, below the new stamp duty threshold. |
