With delays experienced in the conveyancing and processes of buying a property, many people have missed out on the chance to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday that ended on 30 June. But, if you think that was your only chance to move house or get on the property ladder this year, it may not be the end of your journey just yet. There’s still hope!
If you weren’t able to take full advantage of the stamp duty holiday, there are still a few options you could try to either buy your first home or keep your current purchase and sale on track.
Complete by the September deadline
If you weren’t able to complete your purchase by the original 30 June deadline, there’s still the opportunity to make savings on your purchase this year. If you complete before 30 September 2021, you can still benefit from not paying any stamp duty on purchases up to £250,000.
Find out more about the current stamp duty regulations here.
Re-negotiate the house price
If paying additional stamp duty means that the property you’re buying is no longer affordable, you could reach out to the seller and see if they would be willing to lower the price to account for this. Whereas this could be seen as risky and question your commitment as a buyer, it could also be seen as a willingness to keep the purchase on track so that both parties can continue with the original plan.
Depending on how brave you’re feeling, you could broach a renegotiation with all parties in your property chain. If you’ve been affected by the stamp duty changes, chances are others in the chain have been as well and be in a similar position to you. If everybody in the chain agrees were to agree on a reduced sale price, it improves the chances of the whole chain staying in-tact. This process is likely to work best when done via the estate agent or solicitor, who can contact all parties on your behalf and propose the relevant amendments.
Short term renting
If you’re the only person affected in your chain by the stamp duty changes, you can’t renegotiate the purchase price on your new property and don’t want to risk losing the sale on your current property, renting could be the answer. Renting somewhere temporary to live will allow your sale to proceed as planned and time to search the housing market at your own pace until you find another suitable property. As renting takes you out of a chain, this could also put you in a more attractive position with future sellers as you have the ability to proceed with a purchase more quickly.
Keep calm and don’t feel pressured to buy just anywhere
Don’t feel pressured into buying a property just because you think you’re going to get a better deal by not paying as much stamp duty. Unless you’re buying as a landlord, this property is going to become your home where you’ll want to live for a long time, so you want to make sure it’s somewhere you really like.
Expert advice when you need it
Our team of mortgage advisers in York are always on hand to make buying a property go as smoothly as possible. If you’d like to find out how they can help you, get in touch to arrange a no obligation chat on 01904 819903 or send us an e-mail.