The stamp duty free hotspots offering the biggest savings until September

The latest research by lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves, has revealed just how much of the property market is due to remain stamp duty free as a result of the soft landing implemented in the form of a double extension to the holiday for homes sold up to £250,000.

Currently, 93% of local authorities across England are home to an average house price that falls below the current £500,000 stamp duty holiday threshold, meaning the average buyer will pay no stamp duty at all.

While this extension is due to expire in June, the government has implemented a ‘soft landing’ by further extending the holiday for homes purchased at £250,000 or less.

As a result, the average homebuyer across 138 local authorities in England will continue to pay no stamp duty at all. That’s almost half of the market (44%) that will benefit from the double deadline extension announced in last week’s Budget.

The biggest benefit?

Somerset and West Taunton. With an average house price of £248,838, the area falls just within the £250,000 extension meaning that the average homebuyer is set to save the most for the longest period, paying no stamp duty until September versus £2,477 in regular market conditions.

Homebuyers in Blaby are also set to save the most for the maximum amount of time, with an average house price of £248,056 saving £2,461 per purchase right through until the end of September.

Sedgemoor, South Somerset, Torridge, Breckland, the Isle of Wight and Charnwood also rank high in terms of the largest saving and longest opportunity to secure it, with homebuyers saving over £2,400 in stamp duty per sale.

Director of Benham and Reeves, Marc von Grundherr, commented:

“Homebuyers across the nation will be rejoicing at last week’s Budget news of a stamp duty holiday extension and the tax reprieve will continue to save them a considerable amount of money when transacting.

Some have chosen to bypass this positive influence to focus on the potential market cliff edge caused, predicting a house price dip when the expiration date does finally arrive. While this is highly unlikely to materialise, the government has attempted to soften any blow by further extending the deadline for purchases of £250,000 or less.

However, the reality is that this ‘gradual’ return to normality might not actually be that gradual. While it will reduce the number of transactions paying no stamp duty by quite some margin, many homebuyers will still benefit and this is likely to keep demand extremely buoyant right through until September.”

House price data sourced from the Land Registry (Dec 2020)