Almost 40% of buyers who are missing the SDLT deadline place blame on conveyancing

The market insight by London lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves, reveals that 70% of homebuyers who have already had an offer accepted are still expecting to miss the stamp duty deadline on 31st March, with the majority citing the conveyancing process as the key reason for their delays.

Benham and Reeves surveyed more than 1,000 UK homebuyers who have had an offer accepted but have not yet completed the purchase* and found that for 62% the buying journey has taken longer than expected.

Among those respondents, 71% now believe they will miss the stamp duty deadline on 31st March which means they’re likely to have to pay more stamp duty land tax (SDLT) than they would have if the buying journey was able to progress at a faster pace.

When asked what has caused the delays to their purchase, almost 40% (38%) place blame at the door of the conveyancing process.

28% say that delays have been caused by surveys taking longer than expected to complete, while 25% were delayed by being unable to find a property they wanted to buy.

Director of Benham and Reeves, Marc von Grundherr, commented

“Many homebuyers don’t fully understand how long the property purchasing process can take and so it’s little surprise to hear that many have faced frustrating delays.

Even the most proactive of buyers can fall foul to a protracted purchasing timeline and, unfortunately, it’s the conveyancing process that is often to blame.

For today’s homebuyers, the cost of such delays is particularly profound because it could be the difference between beating and missing the SDLT deadline which can itself dictate whether or not buyers have to pay thousands of pounds in land tax.

There’s a good chance that those who do miss the deadline may have to rethink their position within the market, as the likelihood is that a large number simply won’t be able to cover the increased cost of stamp duty and will therefore be unable to proceed.”