The chancellor has announced a temporary holiday on stamp duty on the first £500,000 of all property sales in England and Northern Ireland.......

What has changed?

The government has temporarily increased the stamp duty threshold to £500,000 for property sales in England and Northern Ireland, until 31 March 2021

Anyone completing on a main residence costing up to £500,000 between 8 July and 31 March will not pay any stamp duty, and more expensive properties will only be taxed on their value above that amount.

This will save buyers as much as £15,000, if they are buying a property of £500,000 or more.

The move is aimed at helping buyers who have taken a financial hit because of the corona virus crisis.

It is also intended to boost a property market hit by lock down. According to the Halifax, house prices have fallen for four months in a row.

The average stamp duty bill will fall by £4,500, Chancellor Rishi Sunak has suggested, with nearly nine out of 10 people buying a main home this year paying no stamp duty at all.