ESTATE agents in Scotland have warned a stamp duty increase on £2 million properties could force vendors to sell at a lower price.
Chancellor George Osborne announced a stamp duty rate of 7% – an increase of 2% – on homes costing more than £2m from today.
The Chancellor said it was "fair when money is tight, and so many families could do with help, that those buying the most expensive homes contribute more".
However, he was criticised by first-time buyers who complained there was nothing in the budget to make it easier to get on the property ladder.
The move will mainly affect buyers in London, but property experts have claimed the few who do buy high-value property in Scotland will be reluctant to cross over the threshold and may try to negotiate on the asking price.
Just 14 homes were sold in Scotland above the £2m mark last year. This would have been worth an estimated £800,000 extra to the economy if the new rate had been in place.
Blair Stewart, a partner with estate agent Strutt & Parker, said: "Having sold three properties in excess of £2m in Edinburgh last month, it would be interesting to know whether the extra £146,000 that would have been payable in tax on all these properties combined would have affected the prices at which they sold.
"The 2% increase in tax is likely to have an impact on the price the vendor will eventually receive. If buyers have to pay an extra 2% in stamp duty, they may use that in negotiating the purchase price."
He added that Highland estates could also be affected, but they are looking into whether this could be avoided by breaking the buying price down into property and land.
Faisal Choudhry, of Savills, agreed the increase could affect selling prices, but claimed it would not put buyers off purchasing larger homes.
However, Tony Perrium, of Rettie, claimed the rise in duty would have little or no impact on the Scottish property market. He said: "At the moment, with property values being where they are, this will not have a big impact on Scotland."
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