Changes to Stamp Duty Land Tax rates kick in on 1st April

Changes to Stamp Duty Land Tax rates (SDLT or Stamp Duty) kick in on 1st April 2025. With rates reverting to their previous levels, it will mean higher costs for home movers and first-time buyers.

Currently, our average application to completion turnaround is three months, meaning new cases are unlikely to complete before the 31st March 2025 deadline. We will, of course, endeavour to progress cases as quickly as possible, but unfortunately, we can’t guarantee meeting that deadline.

If you already have a purchase application with us, there are a few things you can do to give your case the best chance of being completed before 31st March 2025. Here are our top tips:

• Ensure you submit all the required documents with your application and if anything is outstanding, send it on as soon as possible. Check out our handy minimum packaging guide to see what’s needed. This will allow us to progress your case to offer quicker.
• You can check our current service levels here.
• If you haven’t done so already, we’d recommend you or your customer speaking to their acting solicitor to discuss the legal process. By confirming information such as associated fees and charges, details of any offer conditions, and their current processing times, you’ll hopefully be able to avoid any hitches that may delay them progressing the mortgage offer to completion.
• And just as a reminder, we require the Certificate of Title to be submitted at least five working days before completion.