Should Stamp Duty Be Abolished ?

[bad company]

Interesting article in the Telegraph making a strong case for reducing or even killing off this tax -
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/9955264...

Comments?

[scenario8]

It does raise rather a lot of money these days, mind. I can't access that report from this (work) pc so I shall be interested to read the author's thoughts later tonight.

[Puggit]

I hate Stamp Duty pretty much more than any tax except Inheritence Tax.

[bad company]

Puggit said:

I hate Stamp Duty pretty much more than any tax except Inheritence Tax.

Not sure I can ever forgive the tories for promising to increase the IHT threshold and failing to do so. I speak as a life long conservative voter.

[anonymous-user]

scenario8 said:

It does raise rather a lot of money these days

at what cost to the wider economy? its a terrible tax. i'd be willing to bet it causes more loss to gdp through congestion alone than it raises

Edited by fbrs on Wednesday 27th March 14:56

[louiebaby]

If they're going to abolish it, can they do it right now?

For what it's worth, I agree with pretty much everything in the article, even taking away my own personal bias.

[oyster]

Property seems to be selling fastest in areas of highest prices (London & the SE) and therefore higher rates of SDLT. This directly contradicts the argument that stamp duty is stifling the market.

[GuitarTech]

He ( Osbourne ) has become hooked to the £6.9bn raised in 2012-13.

Says it all. Don't hold you're breath waiting for it to be abolished...

[vodkalolly]

Perhaps it would be better to determine what total income from taxes would be morally acceptable in a sensible state then sack huge swathes of public sector workers to suit that level of tax. The current approach seems to be to listen to idiots inventing all kinds of daft nonsense like climate change then keep shoving tax up to meet the demands of said idiots. Stamp duty is disgusting its just legalised mugging. In fact all those in favour should be deported.

[DJRC]

Yes.

It is the most inequitable tax that exists. It is to the UK's great shame that we didnt join our colonial cousins in revolting against the monstrous imposition.

[bad company]

According to the aviation lobby a similar case can be made for airline passenger duty (apd) which they say deters tourism to the point that it is costing us money.

[crankedup]

This tax is a PIA, but I suppose it helps to some extent to keep a lid on house price inflation? I can't think of any other positives about it.

[Ozzie Osmond]

The Conservative government was in the process of phasing out Stamp Duty in the 1990s because it is an obstacle to the free market.

Since early 2000s it has been eliminated on ost transactions (such as buying shares) but brought back with a vengeance on property transactions. Rates are higher than ever before (it used to be pretty much a 1% levy) and it's now seen by government as an easy cash cow.

It sould be abolished, or at least cut back to a minimal level. All it does is prevent mobility of families and workers.

[DJRC]

oyster said:

Property seems to be selling fastest in areas of highest prices (London & the SE) and therefore higher rates of SDLT. This directly contradicts the argument that stamp duty is stifling the market.

Well yippee for London. What about the rest of us in the fking sticks?????????????

I wouldnt mind (well OK I do mind) but not only is it an immoral tax its also incompetent! What do you think happens to houses at the £550k pricemark? Nothing moves in that 5-600k range without massive discounting or under the table deals, all because of the bloody stupid stamp duty change at £500k. fking infuriating, esp when Im slogging my guts out, making sacrifices to earn the pissing money to bring back into the UK to afford this st just to buy my family a home to live in for the next 30yrs. But, hey, apparently Im fair game because Im so "rich".

Makes.
Me.
fking.
Livid.

[scenario8]

Just counter to the point immediately above, we sell a great deal of property at the £550k mark - and the £260k level for what it's worth. I'd suggest there are more variables at play than just the duty thresholds if a property with a nominal value of circa £500,000 isn't selling. Not that the duty helps of course.

I'm not a fan of the duty either, by the way. I certainly wasn't this time last year, anyway...

[BoRED S2upid]

As if they are going to scrap a tax and help the working man, its never going to happen!

[steviegunn]

Puggit said:

I hate Stamp Duty pretty much more than any tax except Inheritence Tax.

IHT is about the only tax I don't mind one bit, but then I will never pay it and the beneficiaries of my estate would only be paying it if :

1 - I'm dead and quite frankly like pretty much everything I won't care, I'm dead.

and

2 - I haven't planned ahead to avoid them paying more than absolutely necessary in my will.

and most of all

3 - I have anything of any value to inherit when I die anyway, I certainly don't plan on having a retirement in poverty should I have any assets which have value that can be realised while I'm still alive.

[fido]

oyster said:

Property seems to be selling fastest in areas of highest prices (London & the SE) and therefore higher rates of SDLT. This directly contradicts the argument that stamp duty is stifling the market.

Come on Oyster, because loads of BRICS and now Cypriots are piling into £1m terraced houses in London .. that means Stamp Duty isn't having much of an effect on Mr(s) Average? A 4%/5% haircut is alot cheaper that a 10-50% one!

[rev-erend]

I have long thought this tax unfair.

It's the huge gaps between the tax bands that I find the issue with.

£0 - £125,000 0%
£125,001 - £250,000 1%
£250,001 - £500,000 3%
£500,001 - £1 million 4%
Over £1 million - £2 million 5%
Over £2 million 7%
Over £2 million bought by corporate bodies 15%

The huge jump from 250,001

So if your house is say valued at 265~275 then no one wants to pay the extra tax.

They really should have a more linear structure - with a different percentage value
every 1000 pounds.

[Rude-boy]

scenario8 said:

Just counter to the point immediately above, we sell a great deal of property at the £550k mark - and the £260k level for what it's worth. I'd suggest there are more variables at play than just the duty thresholds if a property with a nominal value of circa £500,000 isn't selling. Not that the duty helps of course.

I'm not a fan of the duty either, by the way. I certainly wasn't this time last year, anyway...

Interesting to hear that from your side of the fence.

From mine I can only think of one transaction in the last 12 months or so that has been in the 251-260k range, but there have been a fair few £275k properties sold for £265k.

Id is stifling the market? Yes, I think that it is, but to a degree. I and a couple of friends are all in the position where we want to move from our existing properties but don’t need to. All of us are sitting where we are as none of us fancies paying £9k+ SDLT because we’d like a bigger kitchen or a bit more land etc.

Please also do not confuse Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Land Tax – the use of the name is a total con and is/designed into leading people into believing that SDLT is just like Stamp Duty and the good old fashioned Stamp Duty that was paid on property transactions before the days of SDLT. I would advise anyone interested enough to have a good look at – especially those powerfully built company directors with their businesses in commercial properties with a rent review in the offing...


Oh and in answer to the OP's question - Yes SDLT should go and we should get back to the old form of Stamp Duty, tweeked to stop those pisstakers in the Capital that caused the government to change the rules in the first place. Rates should also be changed.