Stamp Duty Reform Welcomed by Nock Deighton

The announcement of new stamp duty thresholds has been welcomed by property experts at Nock Deighton.

Chancellor George Osborne announced the reforms during his autumn statement in early December, and Nock Deighton director, Michael Nettleton, says it was a good decision.

“This is certainly good news for the majority of people looking to buy or sell property, as it removes the sudden jump in stamp duty between bands,” Michael says. “The problem has been that the system was outdated, with the higher thresholds of stamp duty hitting the types of property it was never designed to affect.

“For instance a traditional family home in Shropshire, with a value in excess of £250,000, while likely to be a very comfortable and reasonably-sized house, was never designed to be affected by the premium rate. The other major issue was that it caused pockets in the market where it was virtually impossible to agree a sale just above a stamp duty threshold, even though it may have been a fair reflection of the property's relative worth.

“These reforms should help continue to settle the market and enable house prices to be a truer reflection of a property’s worth, which is good news for everyone.”

You can read a useful explanation of the detail of the stamp duty reforms on The Independent’s website by clicking here.