With the March 31st Stamp Duty holiday deadline fast approaching, new research from mortgage broker Mojo Mortgages has highlighted just how close UK homebuyers are cutting it.
According to their analysis of conveyancing times across 395 councils, January 16th is the latest realistic date to start the home-buying process and ensure completion before the tax break ends.
The study shows stark regional variations in conveyancing times, with some councils able to process searches in as few as three days, while others take up to 180 working days.
This creates a “postcode lottery” for buyers, significantly impacting their chances of meeting the deadline and saving thousands in Stamp Duty.
In around 23% of council areas, homebuyers would have needed to start their process by December 2024 to meet the March 31st deadline.
For an additional 31% of councils, Mojo Mortgages warns that homebuyers must start by the end of this week, January 10th, to complete in time. The analysis also indicates that 38% of council areas have a final safe starting date of January 16th.
The research points to extreme cases like Hackney, where conveyancing delays mean buyers would have needed to start their process in July 2024 to meet the deadline.
Mojo Mortgages predicts that if homebuyers miss the deadline, the average Stamp Duty cost for home movers will increase by £2,033. For first-time buyers in London, however, the stakes are even higher. The report shows that their Stamp Duty cost could rise by a staggering £11,250 overnight, increasing from £3,854 to £15,104 for the average property priced at £502,098.
