Land and property stamp tax (SDLT) receipts decreased by 3% between the 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 tax years, from £11.94bn to £11.6bn, according to HMRC’s latest UK Stamp Tax statistics.

The data showed that total stamp taxes receipts have remained largely flat between 2018/2019 and 2019/2020, decreasing by 3% from £15.56bn to £15.12bn.

HMRC revealed that residential SDLT receipts have also stayed broadly flat between 2018/2019 and 2019/2020, increasing by only 1% from £8.37bn to £8.42bn. Non-residential receipts decreased by 11% from £3.57bn to £3.18bn between over the same period.

Jackson-Stops chairman, Nick Leeming, highlighted that while the latest transactional figures had shown just marginal change, next year’s figures are “likely to show a very different picture”.

“Currently, hundreds of thousands of buyers and sellers are rushing to beat the impending 31 March stamp duty holiday deadline,” he commented.
 
“There’s no denying the stamp duty holiday has had its desired effect on the market – on the ground, we’ve seen a notable uptick in activity across every branch, with sales agreed last month amongst the highest on record across the Jackson-Stops network.

“The knock-on effect an active property market has on the wider economy is hugely significant, particularly at a time when businesses need people to spend.
 
“With a no-deal Brexit on the cards and both the stamp duty holiday and the current Help to Buy scheme soon coming to a close, there needs to be urgent measures put in place to prevent another cliff edge. Further support is needed from government to avoid a chaotic and abrupt halt in activity at the beginning of next year and keep the market moving at a time when the economy needs it the most.”

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