Stamp duty in London – 807% rise

Permalink: Stamp duty in London – 807% rise
by Kay Murchie

The average price of a one-bedroom flat in central London is £263,253 according to Zoomf.com, the property search engine.

A decade ago, the average London flat cost £87,088, at that time stamp duty would have been £871. Stamp duty today is a whopping £7,898 on average – a rise of 807% in the last decade.

On average, a 5% deposit of £13,162 is required, the amount needed by first-time buyers to get on the property ladder is £21,000 not including removal costs, legal fees, appliances and furnishings etc.

According to Zoomf.com, only 4 homes in central London are under the £125,000 stamp duty threshold. Three of these are studio flats in Kensington priced from £120,000 and £125,000 and the fourth property is a houseboat.

A spokesperson for Zoomf.com said that stamp duty is an unreasonable charge and creating yet another hurdle for first-time buyers.