Reports from a national newspaper over the weekend have suggested that there could be a glimmer of hope for buyers and sellers in relation to the ever nearing stamp duty land tax (SDLT) holiday deadline on 31 March 2021.
The Daily Telegraph has quoted an unnamed government source, who describes the Chancellor possibly extending the deadline by six weeks to prevent a “completion trap”, and preventing many other transactions from falling through.
In the newspaper, it is reported the source has said:
“It is certainly the case that a lot of people would be caught in the completion trap if the holiday were to end when it is due to.”
This possible short-term extension follows the recent announcement of the extension of the Help to Buy Scheme in England.
Any thoughts of a longer extension are perhaps not on the cards, as the UK Government begins to reduce the debt occurred as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
What would this extension mean for conveyancers who are already working tirelessly to ensure that their client’s housing transaction pipelines continue to progress despite facing ever increasing challenges and log jams. Would this extension simply annoy another set of buyers and sellers who missed out on the deadline?
