Lender calls for Stamp Duty cut as receipts soar

Coventry Building Society has joined calls for Stamp Duty reform.

The lender has urged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to address the controversial property tax in her October Budget.

It comes as analysis of the latest HMRC figures by the brand show homebuyers paid £1.2bn in Stamp Duty during July. 

So far this year homebuyers have paid £6.6bn in Stamp Duty, which is £100m more than the same period last year, according to the research.

Jonathan Stinton, head of mortgage relations at Coventry Building Society, said: “The Treasury is taking in huge sums of property taxes while homebuyers are racking up the debt.

"A Stamp Duty bill can be thousands of pounds so if people don’t have that amount lying around they’ll probably need to borrow more to cover the tax on their home.

“In seven months’ time the scale is set to tip even more in the Treasury’s favour, with the nil rate band set to halve to £125,000. 

“The Chancellor should see the October Budget as an opportunity to level the scales and announce changes which will stop the tax on an average priced property jumping up by £2,500 overnight. Short term pain for the Chancellor could result in longer term gain for the broader economy.”

Stinton suggested that reducing Stamp Duty rates doesn’t have to be too costly for the Treasury, adding: “The Stamp Duty holiday in 2020 and 2021 proved that homebuyers can get a break and tax revenue can remain healthy. It may even benefit the economy as people could spend the extra cash on improving their new home, boosting the retail and services sectors and returning some tax revenue through VAT.”