Reeves' plan to tax houses over 500k

[FridayFeelingmidweek]

Just been reading news about Reeves's plan to tax https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/aug/18/rachel-reeves-stamp-duty-property-tax-council-tax

AIBU to already be worrying about living in the south east? Surely this will force people either to never move, or move away from SE/London.

I'm glad that there is finally something that isn't negatively affecting areas outside the SE but does she actually understand that 500k isn't much down here - 3 bed terrace at best.

Ok so now everyone in London should move to your commuter town. Whats going to happen with property prices in your town; what do you think?
it’s quite a rare place to have 1h commute and property prices “nowhere near”, btw. Count yourself lucky (temporarily)

I remember when Corbyn might have been going to bring in a massive mansion tax on my 5 bed detached. These kind of taxes are very complicated to bring - valuing existing properties etc etc. Moving council tax from tenant to landlord and preventing rent increases would mean less property available for rent which would be a bit of problem given 1.1m new people came to the UK last yera and 1.3m the year before and no sign of that stopping.

I would be utterly appalled if I had to pay even more tax. We used to have a system where it you paid in you took out after WWII and if you were idle you got very little at all. Even my NHS doctor uncle got a council house in the 1940s. You work hard, pay in and take out. We have now moved to the worst of all worlds for the middle class where if you pay in and work very hard and ear a bit more than most you don't even get child benefit never mind for those over the threshold the "30 free hours" for 9 month year olds neve rmind a personal tax allowance plus you have 9% student loan/graduate tax too and full time childcare is about £60k a year for 2 babies in London whether ytou go for 2 nursery places or a daily nanny as there is no employer NI exemption almost every other small employer gets plus compulsory pension payments if you don't got the nursery route.

I already paid massive stamp duty to buy my house (it double the year we bought). I pay £5000 a year council tax and when I die the state gets 40% of all but £325,000 so my property is taxed to the hilt. At one point I had a £1.3m mortgage on it costing £90k a year.

I suppose as always said the only certainties are death and taxes.

The other week I saw one party proposes £2m IHT free band - vast improvement from my £325,000 band. I am very tempted.

I wonder how they would deal with jointly owned properties which are very common in the UK? We already h ave special taxes on those owned by a company - a tax known as ATED brought in for very expensive ones only and then as ever the state brought it right down to £500k properties - they obviously think those mortgaged to the hilt with 5% equity in a 500k home are rich as kings.

@Hedgehogbrownexcept already squeezed landlords would have to sell up as an extra say £200 per month costs just makes it infeasible and the only way to make it work would be to put up rents. But mainly they will sell and there will be so few rentals

Did you not notice that since 2020 we have had a global pandemic, and a war in Europe?
Oh no - it’s Brexit’s fault. 🤦🏼‍♀️

The proposal is to pay it when you sell. Not on ongoing basis.

which actually makes more sense that stamp duty if you ask me.

If they also introduced some form of tax rebate if one uses proceeds from sale of main residence to buy another main residence then it would make even more sense

All taxes put on landlords are passed on to tenants via a rent increase.

Sorting out who pays what with feckless housemates, collecting council tax off them, dealing with students who move in and don't have to pay, making it more for everyone else. Trying to get someone name taken off when they have done a runner and the council won't do it because they need their signature. It will be so much better. There is a limit to how much rent people can actually pay. Landlords can raise the rent only so much before people just leave and move somewhere cheaper.

There was a fully costed budget.
did you miss that Tories hid from everyone 22bn black hole in the budget?

Remind me how much that black hole is now in the space of 13 months? It's super massive proportions isn't it?

People need to sit down and look at their finances and what they are able to claw back.

Im f*cking sick of Labour milking the cash cow dead.

Increased school fees, now taxing properties.

Everyone needs to look at what they are haemorrhaging and try to claw some back.

I’ve upped my pension contributions to the max so I pay less tax. Yes I’ll be taxed later but it’s invested and I can take a lump sum tax free, plus tweak it that end. They aren’t getting a penny more off me if I don’t have to.

Ny kid is now going to 6th Form State school saving me £37k.

If you don’t get child benefit due to £, make sure you are still claiming it and declining the money to get your NI/ pension contributions.

Screw Labour

The IFS called out this ‘black hole’ months before the election, saying they’d eat their hat if Labour didn’t suddenly ‘discover’ a black hole, and lo and behold it happens!

The IFS clearly states that the hole was there to see in plain sight. So either Reeves didn't look or she lied.

https://ifs.org.uk/articles/ps22bn-black-hole-was-obvious-anyone-who-dared-look

But nobody will move here will they? Because according to you commuters are idiots.

Always funny when pp say 'I've upped my pension contributions to the max' as though this is some kind of genius strike against the government instead of exactly what they want you to do.

I live in the North West so even big detached properties often come in under 500,000, so I actually don't mind this. I can see it being difficult for others though.
I prefer it to taking benefits off people, that would destitute people whereas this won't, so it won't put me off Labour.

Covid and the Ukraine war didn't make the UK eject 290 thousand European seasonal and temporary workers each year, and replace them with about a million permanent immigrants each year from Asia, India and Africa. Covid and the Ukraine war didn't make the UK abandon the Dublin Agreement and lead to tens of thousands of small boats each year. If you think Brexit is going well, good luck to you!

Good. Let them sell. Then house prices will crash and people on normal incomes will be able to afford to live somewhere nice. I have no sympathy for anyone who wants to make money of someone's need for shelter.

You realise the changes being discussed were come from a centre right think tank, according to the article?

The irony is, a lot of the people who are long-term unemployed / low-income / in areas where average house prices are well below £500k will vote Reform in at the next election.

Ushering in the Farage policies including tax breaks for those buying / selling properties up to £750k and yet more tax break incentives for those using private schools. But hey, "stop the boats...."

Well this is good news for successful people who want to buy a house for over £1.5m when the 12% stamp duty tax rate used to kick in!

House prices in the commuter belt are catching up with London and the rail system is extortionate and barely coping as it is. It's not the saving it once was.
Your £1m+ house in Cambridgeshire isn't particularly replicable for the average commuter these days as you well know.

How so, because I pay so much into my pension that I pay ZERO tax. How’s that benefitting Labour.

FYI they aren't "tax breaks" for using independent schools. The court was very clear that was a slogan not fact. Zero rating due to Education being a merit good isn't a tax break. Unless you also get tax breaks on your food, utility bills etc?
Independent schools take pressures of the over stretched state schools, especially in regards to SEND children.

It’s mad to me that people are saying ‘but you won’t pay until you sell’ a tax that people won’t pay until some nebulous time in the future is fucking useless to a government that needs to raise revenue now. So what is it… the Labour Party once again have no idea what they are doing and don’t understand the logical consequences of their own policies or a labour government that’s flat out lying to the electorate?

It's pointless taxing lower earners more - low earners are already having their wages topped up by UC as they can't live on the money they earn.

This is one of the problems we have, we spend a lot of money subsidising businesses (and landlords!) through in-work benefits.