UK property buyers currently face significant stamp duty costs that must be paid within 14 days of completion. A new petition proposes allowing buyers to spread stamp duty land tax (SDLT) payments over 2-5 years, potentially making homeownership more affordable for both first-time buyers and existing homeowners looking to move.
What is Stamp Duty and when do you pay it?
There's no denying how stressful the business of buying a home is. Not only is it a worrying time until contracts are exchanged, but there is also a huge amount to think about to ensure everything goes smoothly.
And then there is the cost of everything associated with the transaction from the simple things like change-of-address cards to the huge amounts involved with buying the home, whether it's sourcing the deposit, budgeting for the mortgage repayments or finding the money for the stamp duty land tax (SDLT) - commonly referred to simply as stamp duty (Land Transaction Tax, or LTT, in Wales).
Since stamp duty is the last big bill to be paid in the homebuying business, it's not necessarily something that's thought about in the initial stages of purchasing a property. Stamp duty is essentially a tax payable to HM Revenue and Customs at the completion stage of the transaction. There are various house price levels above which elements of the stamp duty are triggered, with set percentages for each step up through the property's value.
Current UK Stamp Duty rates 2025
As stated on HM Government's website, the rates are triggered as follows:
Property value | SDLT rate |
Up to £125,000 | 0% |
£125,001-£250,000 | 2% |
£250,001-£925,000 | 5% |
£925,001-£1.5m | 10% |
More than £1.5m | 12% |
Source: HM Government; SDLT only - LTT rates differ
Obviously, the higher the agreed purchase price of a property (over the first threshold value), the greater the amount of stamp duty that's required to be paid. There is a slightly different set-up to help first-time buyers, but, depending on the agreed price, even this group of homebuyers will have to find a sum of money that grows significantly as that price increases.
The other issue is that stamp duty, by law, has to be paid within fourteen days of the completion date. While this is handled on your behalf by your conveyancing solicitor, it is still potentially a considerable amount of money that needs to be budgeted for as part of overall property transaction costs.
New proposal: spread Stamp Duty payments over 2-5 years
As mentioned, successive Government's have come up with various schemes to help first-time buyers on to the property ladder but there is no assistance for any group when it comes to finding the cash to pay for the tax bill.
Which is why interesting news comes from a petition launched by Andrews Property Group, and supported by online estate agents Rightmove and Zoopla, as well as being backed by Location, Location, Location presenter Phil Spencer.
Reported by Estate Agent Today, the proposal, raised in a petition and gathering over 1,700 signatures so far (as at 31 July), is for a flexible approach to the payment of SDLT, with the suggestion of spreading its payment over two to five years. The purpose, as the petition states, is to address the issues of affordability for both first-time buyers and the more seasoned house-mover alike.
As David Powell, chief executive of Andrews Property Group, who initiated the petition, said:
"Having Rightmove, Zoopla and Phil Spencer give their support to the petition shows there's real recognition across the industry that we need practical solutions to affordability barriers.
"This reform could unlock significant buyer demand currently held back by cash flow constraints.
"Our next milestone is 10,000 signatures, which would trigger a written government response and bring us closer to the Parliamentary debate at 100,000 signatures."
There is still a fair way to go to reach the next milestone, but the idea is certainly gaining traction and support. What it will translate to, should it become part of future legislation covering the housing market, will be interesting to see, but Homeward Legal will be watching the developments with interest, reporting on significant developments.
You can find out more about the petition on making Stamp Duty payments flexible here.
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