First-time buyers face potential Stamp Duty hike under Labour

The Stamp Duty exemption for first-time buyers will be returned to £300,000 under a Labour Government.

The Labour Party, which is currently ahead in polls and is expected to form the next Government after the General Election this week, has confirmed that the relief will be reduced from its current £425,000 to £300,000.

The threshold had been raised by the Conservative Government in 2022 and was due to be reversed in April 2025 before the Tories used their election manifesto to rule out the change.
But Labour leader Keir Starmer looks likely to press ahead with the move.

The reduction would potentially almost halve the options for first-time buyers to make a fully Stamp Duty-free purchase.

For example, analysis of Rightmove listings shows 51,781 properties listed at up to £425,000, while this drops to 26,215 at £300,000.

The revelation came after he mistakenly told a radio phone-in that Labour would withdraw rules letting retirees take 25% of their pension as a lump sum tax-free.

A spokesperson clarified: “The ability to withdraw 25% of your pension as tax free lump sum is a permanent feature of the tax system and Labour are not planning to change this.

“Keir was referring to temporary tax breaks in the system that are due to expire and which the public finances assume will not continue, like increasing the stamp duty threshold for first-time buyers from £300,000 to £425,000.”