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August saw the highest ever level of property tax revenues per transaction in Scotland, according to analysis of the latest statistics by DJ Alexander.
The estate agency said that Scottish government revenues from Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in August 2023 were £64.1m from just 8,950 sales which equates to an average cost of £7,162 per transaction and is the highest cost per sale ever recorded.
The total figure is the third highest ever with the top eight tax revenue months occurring since July 2022 and the highest ever month occurring in October 2022 with £65.8m from 10,050 sales.
There was £42.9m collected from sales that did not attract an additional dwelling supplement (ADS) and £35.8m of this was collected from just 1,600 sales which equates to £22,375 per property which means that 83.4% of revenue was raised from 17.9% of total sales.
A total of £21.2m was collected in ADS (which is charged at a rate of 6% in addition to LBTT on second homes and investment properties) which is the equivalent of 33.1% of total revenues.
David Alexander, the chief executive officer of DJ Alexander Scotland, commented: “We can see that LBTT continues to be major money earner for the Scottish government with second homeowners and property investors being particularly hard hit.”
“But with just 1600 buyers contributing 83.4% it is clear that there is a diminishing pool of people providing the bulk of this income. Given that the threshold for higher property taxes in Scotland is £325,001 it is increasingly obvious that the people who are paying the most are often the people who are fundamental in doing the jobs which help keep our society going.”
Alexander continued: “While these higher taxes are often presented as being focused on the rich it is clear that many homes worth over £325,001 are not the preserve of millionaires or “greedy bankers” but of ordinary working people who are finding that buying a home has become a major tax burden in their lives.”
“With plans to increase council tax charges for band E properties – whose values can be around £190,000 depending on the age of the building – we can see that taxes are being levied at almost everyone in society. A further recent proposal is to introduce a Scottish version of inheritance tax (IHT) which would be charged at 20% on estates worth over £36,000 to £325,000 which is the level when the UK’s IHT is introduced (although the Westminster government is said to be reviewing this with the aim of reducing this as a tax burden prior to the next election).”
He added: “Given that the majority of people’s estates are comprised of their home we can see that the burden of tax is now being targeted throughout the whole of property owners’ lives. From higher charges for first time buyers, higher LBTT rates at a lower starting price and a punitive tax on death there is a higher charge for every period of home ownership.
“Homeownership has become a cash cow for governments intent on punishing rather than rewarding people for buying a home. It is clearly not fair, and this is not the way to make Scotland a more attractive place to live, work, and invest. Encouraging home ownership, expanding housebuilding, and developing proper relationships with all of those involved in the property market would go some way to displaying a mature and considered approach to resolving our current housing shortages in Scotland.”
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