"Scotland has cheaper stamp duty" is only true up to a point — literally. LBTT’s higher nil-rate band (£145,000 vs England’s £125,000) makes it the better deal at lower prices, but its steeper mid-tier bands mean that advantage reverses hard once you cross into six-figure territory. Here’s exactly where.
Same standard (non-FTB) purchase, at four price points:
| Price | England/NI (SDLT) | Scotland (LBTT) | Cheaper in |
|---|---|---|---|
| £150,000 | £500 | £100 | Scotland, by £400 |
| £250,000 | £2,500 | £2,100 | Scotland, by £400 |
| £400,000 | £10,000 | £13,350 | England/NI, by £3,350 |
| £600,000 | £20,000 | £33,350 | England/NI, by £13,350 |
The gap flips somewhere between £250,000 and £400,000, and widens fast above that — by £600,000, LBTT costs 67% more than SDLT would on the identical purchase.
SDLT’s 5% band runs all the way from £250,001 to £925,000 — a long, flat middle tier. LBTT instead moves to 10% at just £325,001, double the rate over a much wider slice of a typical family-home purchase. That's the entire mechanism behind the crossover.
Run your actual purchase price through both regions and see your exact duty, plus the monthly repayment.
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