Inside the scramble to beat the stamp duty deadline ...0

Given it takes an average of 151 days to complete a property transaction after agreeing a sale, a delay of 24 hours may seem inconsequential.

But between Monday and Tuesday next week, this is not the case. In fact, a delay of just a day could mean someone buying an average-priced home has to fork out an extra £2,500.

This is because until the end of Monday 31 March, first-time buyers do not pay any stamp duty – a tax you pay when buying a property – on homes costing up to £425,000, while the threshold for other buyers is £250,000.

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However, as of Tuesday 1 April, the current stamp duty levels, which have been in place since the mini-Budget in September 2022, will come to an end.

It means the threshold for first-time buyers will drop to £300,000 while for everyone else, it will be halved to £125,000.

A typical buyer will face a tax bill of £4,750 instead of £2,250 – in addition to legal and conveyancing costs, mortgage fees and their deposit.

It’s why those working in the property industry describe a “hectic” start to 2025, trying to scramble deals over the line to keep costs as low as possible for their clients.

It involved the chivvying of solicitors, the hopeful booking of removal services before purchases have been completed, and in some cases, underhanded tactics from sellers trying to use the deadline as “leverage” to secure better deals, according to those working in the industry.

For those who definitely won’t make it, the months before the deadline have been an exercise in managing expectations. However, for those who are still hopeful, Tuesday could be desperately disappointing.

Experts even say some clients simply won’t be able to afford the higher charges if they do miss the deadline, and could end up having to abandon purchase plans, creating a “chill” in the market.

Given that the increase in stamp duty was only announced in October at Labour’s Autumn Budget, buyers were already on the back foot when it came to hitting the deadline.

As an average property purchase takes 151 days according to Rightmove, the process would typically have to have started in August 2024 for someone to meet next week’s deadline.

Simon Gerrard, chairman at Martyn Gerrard Estate Agents, which covers London, says the agency did setup work for those preparing to sell in advance of the Christmas holidays, “so they could be ready to go to market on the first day of 2025 and be on the front foot to complete on time.”

Emma Fildes, founder of the Brickweaver property buying agency says purchases that were agreed at the end of last year are the ones that were going to the wire.

“It’s been a hectic start to the year, with many of the sales agreed at the end of 2024 now rushing to complete in time,” she says.

Mark Lawrinson, operations director, residential sales at Beresfords Group, an estate agency in Essex, said in January, his staff were “already managing expectations” with some customers that sales were unlikely to be completed by the end of the March deadline.

Mark Lawrinson is been working to get client deals over the line before the stamp duty deadline

Jane King, a mortgage adviser at Ash Ridge, told The i Paper she was having conversations with clients at the beginning of December, explaining they needed an offer in place and would need a “darn good firm of conveyancers” to have “any chance of hitting the deadline.

How the scramble has played out

Ms Fildes has two clients completing on a property this Friday, four days before the deadline – they will save £2,500 in stamp duty as a result.

She says the process has faced “several hurdles” and key to making the purchase on time has been “a gentle – but consistent – nudge to the solicitors involved.”

Solicitors play a key role in property purchases, from drafting contracts and reviewing documents.

Ms Fildes says managing their pace has been key to getting the purchase she refers to over the line.

“There’s a fine art to chasing: it’s not just about persistence, but how it is received when delivered. Overwhelmed solicitors being shouted at rarely yields the desired results. Polite persistence is usually most effective,” she says.

She believes some buyers who chose the cheapest quotes from solicitors may regret doing so.

“They may find that decision costs them more in the long run, especially if they don’t complete before the April deadline.”

Mr Lawrinson says one tactic being used by clients to try and get purchases over the line is simultaneous exchange and completion.

“Normally, you would find people exchange contracts, the point at which it becomes legally binding, and set a completion date a minimum of a week after to allow sufficient time for them to arrange removals and be prepared for the day that they need to vacate their current property and move into a new one.”

But he says this is no longer typical, as there has been a significant increase in people exchanging and completing on the same day.

“In some cases, we have even heard of stories where people have been booking removal companies in advance of the simultaneous exchange and completion and then when it hasn’t happened, they are having to pay penalty fees and roll those removals over until such point that they can get the simultaneous exchange and completion through,” he says.

Some sellers have also seen the deadline as an opportunity, hoping they can use buyer desperation as a way to charge slightly higher prices in the hope they will pay to force through a quick sale.

“There are also some people that try to be opportunistic during negotiations to use the deadline as leverage,” says Simon Gerrard.

“However, they normally change course once it is explained that they are playing a high risk, low reward game which will only see the deal sunk and them out of pocket. Sellers are ultimately just as exposed as buyers, but the impacts are felt indirectly and some need reminding of this,” he adds.

Mortgage lenders have also been working round the clock to try and stop clients missing the deadline.

Nick Mendes, mortgage technical manager at John Charcol, explains: “Lenders have shown strong support for the market. For example, Barclays and Lloyds committed to processing all completions submitted at least a week before the deadline, provided certificates of title were received no later than 25 March.”

Some set to face let down come Tuesday

Some who hope to do so will inevitably not complete before Tuesday. In some cases this could end up with collapsing deals.

“Many buyers are simply not in a position to pay the additional costs and will be forced to pull out of the purchase if it doesn’t complete by the 31 March,” Mr Gerrard explains.

“Going forward, the changes are likely to place a chill on the entire market. Most first-time buyers in London are going to have to save thousands more to get on the housing ladder, creating another obstacle to an already Herculean task,” he adds.

Ms King says though all her clients have completed, she has had new clients call her this month asking if it was too late to hit the deadline, which of course it was.

Mr Lawrinson is hoping some deals that will miss the deadline can still continue, albeit with perhaps new prices.

“I’m sure come 1 April several conversations may be had where people are looking to renegotiate,” he says.

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