Stamp duty hits the south hardest

By Tom Derbyshire on March 26, 2008 2:22 PM |

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New homes buyers in the south are faced with stamp duty bills that are £7,533 higher than those in the north, based on the current average price of a new home recorded in February.

The figures come from the latest SmartNewHomes.com index, revealing that the average residential stamp duty bill is nearly five times higher in the south than in the north.

The most expensive stamp duty bill is in Greater London at £12,184 and the least expensive is in the East Midlands at £2,130.

According to SmartNewHomes.com, high stamp duty figures are just one factor contributing to the high levels of outward migration in the south-east and London which are seeing figures of 6.3 per cent and 8.2 per cent respectively while the north is seeing inward migration of 6.7 per cent.

David Bexon, managing director of SmartNewHomes.com, said: “New home buyers in the south-east are being penalised for living in the most expensive parts of the UK.

“Average new home prices in the south-west, south-east and London all fall into the 3 per cent stamp duty tax threshold.

“Recent figures have highlighted the stamp duty bill for the average first-time buyer in the UK in 2007 was £1,751, 82 per cent more than that paid in 2002.

“In London, the average first-time buyer is now liable to pay £8,000 in stamp duty. This, coupled with all other associated home-buying costs, is proving an unattainable goal.

“The latest figures from our index show that average prices in the UK are not remotely near the lowest stamp duty exemption threshold of £125,000 or under. These thresholds are out of date and the Government needs to take note.”