Calculate the stamp duty on your house sale

A man uses a stamp duty calculator to see how much he has to pay to buy a home

You can calculate stamp duty with this article

(Image credit: Getty Images)

last updated 6 September 2024

With house prices recovering and mortgage rates slipping back, the housing market is on the up again.

Even though the difficult affordability situation we've seen over the last few years is easing slightly, it is still crucial to know exactly how much you may need to pay in additional fees and taxes. One of the most costly of these extras is stamp duty.

The property tax - which some describe as the “worst tax in Britain” - has changed several times since 2020. During the pandemic, it was temporarily suspended by then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak in a bid to get the housing market moving. This stamp duty holiday sent house prices soaring as buyers rushed to take advantage of it.

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Then, in the disastrous mini-Budget, Kwasi Kwarteng announced a permanent cut to the tax which was intended to help first-time buyers get onto the property ladder. His successor as Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, watered down the measure in the follow up fiscal event that came after Rishi Sunak was made Prime Minister.

This temporary tax cut is due to expire on 31 March 2025. That is, unless Chancellor Rachel Reeves announces anything in her Budget.

So, what can you expect to pay in stamp duty - and what will happen after March 2025? We’ve got all the latest information, as well as a stamp duty calculator.

Stamp duty: how much will you pay?

Home buyers in England will see the amount of tax they pay vary depending on the price bracket or brackets their property falls into. First-time buyers get a discounted rate, while buyers in Scotland and Wales face a different form of tax (more on this below). Non-residential property or land is also subject to different taxes and rates.

Here’s what you will pay in stamp duty, depending on the value of the home you’re buying:

Swipe to scroll horizontally

England stamp duty calculator
Property cost	Stamp duty rate per band	Max. you could pay per band
Up to £250,000	0%	£0
£250,001 to £925,000	5%	£33,750
£925,001 to £1.5m	10%	£57,500
£1.5m+	12%	£60,000*

*assuming property price of £2m

Before these temporary rates came in, you would have to pay stamp duty on anything over £125,000. The Treasury says the doubling of this threshold means buyers are saving up to £2,500 per transaction.

Meanwhile, first-time buyers are currently exempt from paying the tax up to an amount of £425,000 (it used to be £300,000) and can access relief of up to £8,750 on homes costing up to £625,000. The government says this regime means 78% of first-timers are paying nothing in stamp duty, while 46% of all buyers are also not having to pay the tax.

Is stamp duty changing?

The current stamp duty regime is expiring at the end of March 2025. During the general election campaign, former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said he would not increase stamp duty if his party gets re-elected.

But Labour has so far remained quiet on its plans. Given the party has warned that significant economic pain is on the way, it seems unlikely that a further tax break is on the way. MoneyWeek will update this piece as soon as more information becomes available.

How much property tax could you pay in Scotland and Wales?

As we’ve already mentioned, Scotland and Wales have different property tax regimes. The devolved government in Edinburgh replaced stamp duty with the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in 2015, while the Welsh government replaced it with the Land Transaction Tax (LTT) in 2018.

Land and Buildings Transaction Tax in Scotland

The rates of LBTT are set by the Scottish government and are locked in until 2026. Here’s what the bands look like:

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Scotland LBTT calculator
Property cost	LBTT rate per band	Max. you could pay per band
Up to £145,000	0%	£0
£145,001 to £250,000	2%	£2,100
£250,001 to £325,000	5%	£3,750
£325,001 to £750,000	10%	£42,500
Over £750,000	12%	£30,000*

*Assuming property price of £1m

First-time buyers are exempt from paying anything up to a value of £175,000. While all of these bands may sound low, property north of the border tends to be significantly cheaper than what you could pay in England and Wales.

Land Transaction Tax in Wales

The devolved administration in Cardiff does not offer special rates for first-time buyers. Here’s what you will pay in Wales:

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Wales LTT calculator
Property cost	LTT rate per band	Max. you could pay per band
Up to £225,000	0%	£0
£225,001 to £400,000	6%	£10,500
£400,001 to £750,000	7.5%	£26,250
£750,001 to £1.5m	10%	£75,000
Over £1.5m	12%	£60,000*

*Assuming property price of £2m

Henry Sandercock has spent more than eight years as a journalist covering a wide variety of beats. Having studied for an MA in journalism at the University of Kent, he started his career in the garden of England as a reporter for local TV channel KMTV.

Henry then worked at the BBC for three years as a radio producer - mostly on BBC Radio 2 with Jeremy Vine, but also on major BBC Radio 4 programmes like The World at One, PM and Broadcasting House. Switching to print media, he covered fresh foods for respected magazine The Grocer for two years.

After moving to NationalWorld.com - a national news site run by the publisher of The Scotsman and Yorkshire Post - Henry began reporting on the cost of living crisis, becoming the title’s money editor in early 2023. He covered everything from the energy crisis to scams, and inflation. You will now find him writing for MoneyWeek. Away from work, Henry lives in Edinburgh with his partner and their whippet Whisper.