Mark McLaughlin highlights an occasion when establishing if a dwelling is an individual’s main residence is important for stamp duty land tax purposes.
Stamp duty land tax (SDLT) rates (or equivalent in Scotland and Wales, which are not considered here) on residential property can be a significant cost for homeowners; moreso if higher SDLT rates apply to additional dwellings.
Replacement dwelling?
However, the purchase of a qualifying replacement dwelling is not liable to the higher SDLT rates. One of the conditions for the higher SDLT rates is that the purchased dwelling is not a replacement for the purchaser’s only or main residence (FA 2003, Sch 4ZA, para 3(6)).
The purchased dwelling is a ‘replacement’ if (among other things), on the effective date of the transaction, the purchaser intends the dwelling to be their only or
