Stamp Duty based on mortgage redemption

Johnny Bitte

Quick one for ye,
Just got the final bill from my solicitor which includes surprise
Stamp Duty based on mortgage redemption €740.00

Ex and myself have a joint mortgage, she is signing out.
No new mortgage just altering the current one.

How is stamp duty payable?

juke

When you say she signed off the joint mortgage I'm assuming she signed her half of the house over to you and the bank didn't require you to take out a new mortgage.

But she would have signed a transfer deed signing her half of the house (and her half of the mortgage liability) to you. The stamp duty is payable on that transfer deed.

The stamp duty would normally be calculated based on the value of her half share of the house - 1% since the last budget. In other words, her half share was worth c. €75,000?

The reason the solicitor phrased it that way is possibly because of the way the transfer deed was drafted, this value used was in fact half the value of the existing mortgage.

If that makes sense....:o

Johnny Bitte

Thanks Juke, very clear now.

Just your own opinion, who do you think should pay this fee?

We had basically come to an arrangement to get her to leave that I would pay the solicitors fees, but that was before this popped up.

juke

And I guess you came to the agreement with her before the last budget? If you were first time buyers when you originally bought, you wouldn't have needed to pay on this transaction. The budget changed that

Unfortunately, from a legal perspective, you are liable for the Stamp Duty.

Given this extra cost there's no reason why not to ask her to contribute towards it - her response will I suspect depend on what she's getting out of the deal, and how much she wants to be free of the mortgage liability.

Good luck

ted1

the buyer pays. Simple as.

Johnny Bitte

Thanks Juke,
Great help.

Kosseegan

juke wrote: »

And I guess you came to the agreement with her before the last budget?:)

If a legally binding agreement was entered into before the budget there wiould be no stamp duty. If after the solicitor was negilgent in not advising you and negotiating the payment of the charge.

juke

Kosseegan wrote: »

If a legally binding agreement was entered into before the budget there wiould be no stamp duty. If after the solicitor was negilgent in not advising you and negotiating the payment of the charge.

Agreed - if
a. they were first time buyers before hand and
b. if there was a written agreement at all - in this sort of arrangement, there rarely is

Kosseegan

juke wrote: »

Agreed - if
a. they were first time buyers before hand and
b. if there was a written agreement at all - in this sort of arrangement, there rarely is

Nothing to do with first time buyer status. There was no stamp duty on transfers between spouses.
Settlements involving a solicitor are always reduced to writing.

juke

Kosseegan wrote: »

Nothing to do with first time buyer status. There was no stamp duty on transfers between spouses.

There's still no tax between spouses. There's no mention of spouses here.
I was assuming a couple whose relationship had broken up.

Kosseegan wrote: »

Settlements involving a solicitor are always reduced to writing.

Disagree. Completely depends of the type of transaction and the solicitor(s) involved. Of course, better that they are

In any event being "reduced in writing" is not necessarily a "binding contract" which is what the Revenue Commissioner would require in order to avail of pre-budget relief.