Stamp Duty Refund (Main Residence)

[ooid]

Hello all,

I'm currently selling my main residence and buying somewhere else due to job-relocation. Once it's completed (hopefully), it would have been less than 3 years in my ownership. Can I apply Stamp Duty Refund? As I originally paid a good sum nearly 2 years ago...

PS: I've already asked this to our solicitor, he was not so sure and I do not have any other property.

Cheers

[Sheepshanks]

Think that's only possible if you paid the uplift due it not being your only property.

[anonymous-user]

Did you have any other property at the time you bought your current main residence?

The element that is reclaimable is only the 3% premium paid due to owning more than one property

If you just bought your only property a couple of years ago and are then moving: selling your only property and buying a replacement, there is no reclaim

[Mr Whippy]

Afaik the refund is for when you pay the higher rate during ownership overlap between main residencies.

Ie, you own home X.
You buy Y and pay higher rate as you already own X.
You sell X, and if sold within 3 years of buying Y you can claim difference between normal and higher rate.

[CRA1G]

Mr Whippy said:

Afaik the refund is for when you pay the higher rate during ownership overlap between main residencies.

Ie, you own home X.
You buy Y and pay higher rate as you already own X.
You sell X, and if sold within 3 years of buying Y you can claim difference between normal and higher rate.

Absolutely spot on... we did this a couple of years ago,bought a property outright before we had sold our other property which we had lived in over 20 years so had to pay the higher S/D on the second property which we claimed back when the other property sold but it took nearly 9 months after the application went in before we received the refund.

[LooneyTunes]

CRA1G said:

Absolutely spot on... we did this a couple of years ago,bought a property outright before we had sold our other property which we had lived in over 20 years so had to pay the higher S/D on the second property which we claimed back when the other property sold but it took nearly 9 months after the application went in before we received the refund.

It’s a lot quicker now. About a month if you give them all the information they need to link the transactions (the hardest thing to lay hands on is often the UTR, by the lawyer handling your purchase will have this).

[Mr Whippy]

3yrs should be plenty of time to move and get the old place sold.

Pretty sure you can get 6 months or something without council tax too.

[CRA1G]

Mr Whippy said:

Pretty sure you can get 6 months or something without council tax too.

I don't know about that..? We didn't move into our second property for 3 months but the council used the date of exchange the start charging us council tax...!

[nw942]

CRA1G said:

Mr Whippy said:

Pretty sure you can get 6 months or something without council tax too.

I don't know about that..? We didn't move into our second property for 3 months but the council used the date of exchange the start charging us council tax...!

Some councils will give you a discounted rate/period. Others will actually charge a premium for empty or second homes.

I have also claimed back the full cost of my water bills in the past when the property was empty, although this may vary depending on supplier.