Stamp Duty Holiday Here to Stay?

The estate agent, Knight Frank, has called for the stamp duty holiday to be implemented permanently - currently this ends on 31 March 2020.

They say:

“On a multi-million pound property, the saving will be a small percentage of the transaction price but it represents a meaningful discount for the vast majority of UK buyers.”

For the period 8 July 2020 to 3 August 2020, Knight Frank confirm that:

1. The number of offers accepted was 146% above the 5 year average for properties for sale valued at less than £1.5m (the most affected section of the housing market). For properties valued at £1.5m, there was an increase in offers of 71% (again for the same 5 year period).

2. There were a 100% more new buyer registrations for the below £1.5m property range, and a 70% increase in buyer registrations above that property threshold.

3. The number of viewings grew 46% compared with the 5 year average for the properties valued below £1.5m. This increase was 13% for the above £1.5m valued properties.

Knight Franks says:

“The holiday, it must be concluded, is working. Whether it should become a permanent arrangement is something the government should consider.”

And:

"More companies are announcing job cuts and any additional financial friction around the mobility of labour or people unfortunately made redundant could prove counter-productive …If more people are moving home, that is good for the economy well beyond the confines of the housing market”.

How to Work Out How Much Stamp Duty to Pay?

To work out your potential stamp duty costs, Knight Frank have a very simple stamp duty calculator, available here.

Has the Stamp Duty Holiday Persuaded You to Sell?

Yes, this was the response of our most recent client, S Pither. She says:

When we previously looked at selling, our stamp duty liabilities were approaching £50k. As a result of the stamp duty holiday, we're saving ourselves thousands.

We intend to use this saving to invest in our new home."

Our client came to us at very short notice asking us to present their home at its best, using what they had, prior to the professional photographer arriving. We arrived the night before the professional photographer, ready and eager to start our SWIFT STAGING SERVICE.

The client had many collectibles, so delicately we had a conversation with them about how these would distract potential buyers and by packing them away safely, we were getting them focused on their move.

We proceed to stage each room, inside and out and within a matter of hours we we're complete.

The client is thrilled:

"We'd booked in the professional photographer and wanted to present our property at it's best. We asked sort style and stage to help at very short notice.

They decluttered our home and staged it beautifully. They worked quickly using what we had. We love the results. We can't wait to see the professional photos.

We're really confident now that we'll attract lots of buyer interest."

Our client realised that:

they want to take the benefit of the stamp duty holiday

we are in a mini boom and in fact, there are less properties available than there are buyers - read an earlier blog of ours about this here

that the stamp duty holiday is for a defined window of opportunity - for property transactions completed by 31 March 2020

that the conveyancing process takes longer now because of Covid-19. This would take an average of 8-12 weeks pre Covid-19 so the current timeline is likely to be longer

Do you resonate with these thoughts? If so, and you are looking to sell and complete before the stamp duty holiday ends, it's more important than ever that you present your home at its best to attract your target market.

How sort style and stage can help

Whatever the size, shape or value of your home or investment property, we can maximise its appeal to your target market. We do this by:

1. Understanding your target market and your competition

2. Identifying and tackling head on any red flags that would otherwise put off your target market

3. We then focus on maximising your property's appeal to your target market, in and out with our well proven staging methodology

Our solutions are cost effective and tailored to your specific needs.

Professionally staged properties sell for more, typically 8% and sell more quickly, typically up to 3 times faster than a non-staged property. This is evidenced by the Home Staging Association UK & Ireland.

If you professionally stage your home or investment, you'll be that step closer to securing a sale or let.