Property News

Stamp duty "burden should be moved" - 15/05/2006

Excellent! Very Good Good Fair Poor

Why not be the first to rate this article?

The industry has been urged to change the way stamp duty is currently imposed on first-time buyers (FTBs).

Stamp duty has been described as an unfair tax that particularly afflicts FTBs, preventing them from making their first steps on the property ladder.

Matthew Wyles, group development officer for Portman Building Society, said the stamp duty "burden should be moved to the vendor from the buyer".

He added that this would consequently mean it would "act as a crude capital gains tax, [which] should be based on the ability to pay".

Currently stamp duty does not take affordability of the buyer into consideration, which is why Mr Wyles feels it is better to ask the vendor to seek the tax, who one could "assume" is more likely to afford it.

Mr Wyles' comments follow a survey from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), which states that half of all FTBs and three quarters of home movers are now required to pay the tax.

This is despite the government raising the stamp duty threshold from £60,000 to £125,000 within the last two budgets.

© Adfero

Back to Index