Written by Rosalind Renshaw, 3rd Dec 2014:
Stamp Duty Land Tax is to be changed at midnight after today's Autumn Statement by Chancellor George Osborne. Osborne announced that he would be completely reforming what he described as a "badly designed tax on aspiration". He has jettisoned the old "slab" structure, by which home buyers paid SDLT on the entire purchase price of the property. Instead, he has replaced it with a "progressive" structure which, he insisted, would benefit 98% of home purchasers. The reforms will not, he told the Commons, affect those currently in the middle of house moving, who will be able to choose whether to pay SDLT under the old or new system. Eye will get more clarity on this point, but we believe the Chancellor meant buyers who have exchanged but not completed. We now have this vital clarification. www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax-rates "Where contracts have been exchanged on or before 3 December 2014, and the transaction is completed on 4 December or later, you can choose whether you follow the new or the old rules." Under the new reforms:
