The Welsh Conservatives have pledged to abolish the Land Transaction Tax (LTT) – Wales’s equivalent of stamp duty – on main home purchases if they win next May’s Senedd election.
Welsh Conservative Senedd leader Darren Millar said the tax “must be scrapped to get our housing market and economy moving.”
The announcement follows a similar policy revealed earlier this week by UK Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch for England and Northern Ireland.
Control over stamp duty in Wales was devolved to the Welsh government in 2018, when powers were transferred from Westminster to Labour ministers.
In Wales, there is currently no first-time buyer relief, and the main residential Land Transaction Tax (LTT) rates have remained unchanged since 2022.
At present, no tax is paid on homes valued up to £225,000. Properties priced between £225,000 and £400,000 are taxed at 6%, while those between £400,000 and £750,000 face a 7.5% rate. Higher rates apply to more expensive homes.
The Welsh Conservatives have proposed abolishing the tax on main home purchases and said they would fund the policy using £400m in unallocated funds from next year’s budget – money identified by finance secretary Mark Drakeford.
Millar said: “The aspiration-sapping Welsh stamp duty must be scrapped to get our housing market and economy moving, and to give people the dignity of owning their own home.
“I want Wales to be a home-owning democracy where everyone has a stake in their local community, and more money in their own pockets.”
Read the orginal article: https://propertyindustryeye.com/tories-pledge-reform-of-welsh-version-of-stamp-duty/
