HomeBuyingCosts Guide
Stamp Duty on £250,000 (UK Guide)
Written and reviewed by James Whitfield · Updated 2026-02-17 · 6 min read
Checked against 2026/27 HMRC, Revenue Scotland & HM Land Registry rates · Editorial standards · Methodology
Use £250,000 as a baseline scenario and compare nearby prices before committing to an offer.
Key takeaways
Stamp duty on a £250,000 home in England or Northern Ireland is £2,500 for a home mover.1 A first-time buyer pays nothing — the price sits under the £300,000 relief threshold.2 Buying it as a second home costs £15,000, the extra £12,500 being the 5% surcharge.3
This page shows exactly how the £250,000 figure is built up band by band, what changes if you're a first-time buyer or buying an extra property, and what the same purchase would cost in Scotland and Wales. Use it to sense-check a quote before you commit.
Worked examples — home mover typical fees
| Price | England/NI tax | Scotland tax | Wales tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| £300,000 | £5,000 | £4,600 | £4,500 |
| £500,000 | £15,000 | £23,350 | £18,000 |
| £750,000 | £27,500 | £48,350 | £36,750 |
How the £2,500 is worked out, band by band
SDLT is a slice tax, not a flat percentage. You pay each rate only on the part of the price that falls inside its band, which is why the effective rate is always lower than the top band you touch.
For a £250,000 home mover purchase, the slices stack up like this:
| Price band | Rate | Portion taxed | SDLT due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to £125,000 | 0% | £125,000 | £0 |
| £125,001 to £250,000 | 2% | £125,000 | £2,500 |
| Total SDLT | £250,000 | £2,500 |
Each rate applies only to the slice of the price inside that band — not to the whole price.1
That's £2,500 in total — an effective rate of 1.00% on the full price, even though the top slice is taxed at a higher band.
First-time buyer vs home mover vs second home
Same house, same price — but the stamp duty changes a lot depending on who's buying:
| Buyer type | SDLT on £250,000 | vs home mover |
|---|---|---|
| Home mover (own one home) | £2,500 | — |
| First-time buyer | £0 | −£2,500 |
| Second home / buy-to-let | £15,000 | +£12,500 |
A first-time buyer pays nothing here. Relief wipes out SDLT on the first £300,000 and you're under that, so the only people paying tax at this price are movers and additional-property buyers.2
The additional-property surcharge is the one that catches people out. If you'll own more than one residential property at the end of the day you complete — a buy-to-let, a holiday home, even a share of a house you inherited — you add 5% of the entire price. On £250,000 that's an extra £12,500, taking the bill to £15,000.3
The rest of your cash-to-completion
Stamp duty is the biggest single line, but it isn't the only cash you need before you get the keys. On top of your deposit, budget for:
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Stamp duty (SDLT) | £2,500 |
| Conveyancing / solicitor fees | £1,000–£1,800 |
| Local searches & disbursements | £250–£450 |
| HM Land Registry fee | £20–£455 (scale by price) |
| Survey (Level 2 HomeBuyer) | £400–£700 |
| Mortgage arrangement / valuation fee | £0–£1,500 |
Legal, search and survey figures are typical 2026 market ranges; the Land Registry fee is set by an official scale.6 Your solicitor's completion statement is the final word.
Realistically, add £2,000–£3,500 to the £2,500 of tax for a typical mortgaged purchase at this price. Get quotes early — search and lender fees are the ones that appear late and blow a tight budget.
One deadline worth knowing: the SDLT return has to be filed and the tax paid within 14 days of completion. Your solicitor normally handles it, but the money has to be sitting with them.6
The same £250,000 home in Scotland and Wales
Tax is set by where the property is, not where you live. If you're comparing across the border, the difference at this price is worth knowing before you fall for a place:
| Where you buy | Tax on £250,000 (home mover) |
|---|---|
| England / N. Ireland (SDLT) | £2,500 |
| Scotland (LBTT) | £2,100 |
| Wales (LTT) | £1,500 |
Scotland uses LBTT4 and Wales uses LTT5; both have their own bands, so the same price can cost a very different amount of tax.
Scotland's LBTT works out at £2,100 and Wales's LTT at £1,500 for a home mover — different than the £2,500 you'd pay in England. Both nations also add their own surcharge on second homes (8% in Scotland, higher rates in Wales).45
Common mistakes people make at this price
After years of completion statements, the same few slip-ups come up again and again:
• Forgetting the surcharge. If you complete on this home before selling your old one — or you keep any other property — that's a £12,500 surprise. You can reclaim it if the old main home sells within 36 months, but you have to fund it first.3
• Trusting a single online figure. A number that doesn't ask whether you're a first-time buyer, a mover or a landlord, or which nation you're buying in, is guessing. All three change the answer.
• Budgeting for the tax but not the trimmings. The £2,000–£3,500 of legal, search, survey and lender costs land at roughly the same time and catch people who planned only for deposit plus stamp duty.
Use the calculator for this topic
Frequently asked questions
How much is stamp duty on a £250,000 house?+
A home mover pays £2,500 in SDLT on a £250,000 home in England or Northern Ireland for 2026/27.1 A first-time buyer pays £0 (nothing — the price is under the £300,000 relief threshold), and a second-home buyer pays £15,000 once the 5% surcharge is added.3
Do first-time buyers pay stamp duty on £250,000?+
No — relief covers the whole price at this level, so it's £0.2
What's the second-home stamp duty on £250,000?+
£15,000. That's the standard £2,500 plus a 5% additional-property surcharge of £12,500. It applies if you'll own more than one residential property at completion.3
How much is the tax in Scotland or Wales on £250,000?+
In Scotland the LBTT is £2,1004 and in Wales the LTT is £1,5005 for a home mover. Both differ from England's £2,500 because they use their own bands.
When do I have to pay it?+
Within 14 days of completion. Your solicitor files the SDLT return and pays HMRC on your behalf, using funds you provide before completion.6
Are these figures guaranteed?+
They're accurate against the published 2026/27 rates, but your solicitor's completion statement is the final, binding figure. Confirm your buyer status and any surcharge with them before exchange.
Sources & references
OfficialThe figures and rules on this page are drawn from the official UK government sources below. Rates are the confirmed 2026/27 amounts. Each link opens the relevant official page in a new tab.
- GOV.UK — SDLT residential property rates www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax/residential-property-rates Current band-by-band residential SDLT rates for 2026/27.
- GOV.UK — First-time buyers' SDLT relief www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax/residential-property-rates#first-time-buyers Relief: nil-rate to £300,000, 5% to £500,000, none above £500,000.
- GOV.UK — Higher rates for additional properties www.gov.uk/guidance/stamp-duty-land-tax-buying-an-additional-residential-property The 5% additional-property surcharge and 36-month refund rules.
- Revenue Scotland — Land and Buildings Transaction Tax revenue.scot/taxes/land-buildings-transaction-tax Scottish LBTT residential rates and the Additional Dwelling Supplement.
- Welsh Revenue Authority — Land Transaction Tax rates www.gov.wales/land-transaction-tax-rates-and-bands Welsh LTT residential rates and bands.
- GOV.UK — Pay Stamp Duty Land Tax www.gov.uk/pay-stamp-duty-land-tax Filing the SDLT return and paying within 14 days of completion.
Verified against published UK government guidance. See also Methodology and Editorial standards.
Related guides
Written and reviewed by James Whitfield and the HomeBuyingCosts editorial team.
Stamp duty, LBTT and LTT figures are checked against GOV.UK, Revenue Scotland and GOV.WALES. We explain every cost of buying a home in plain English, with worked examples. Editorial standards · About us