ValuQ Property Glossary

Money, tax and fees

The taxes and fees of moving home, and the difference between the ones everyone pays, the ones only some pay, and the ones nobody should pay twice.

32 terms · Last reviewed 24 July 2026.

Stamp duty land tax (SDLT)

Also known as: stamp duty

Stamp duty land tax is the tax buyers pay on property purchases in England and Northern Ireland, charged in slices at rising rates.

For a single main home the first £125,000 is tax-free, with rates stepping up through the bands above it. It is a buyer's tax: sellers pay none on the home they sell.

First-time buyer relief

First-time buyer relief exempts eligible buyers from stamp duty on the first £300,000 of a home costing up to £500,000.

Everyone buying must be a first-time buyer for it to apply, and above the £500,000 price ceiling the relief vanishes entirely rather than tapering.

Additional property surcharge

Also known as: higher rates, second home stamp duty

The additional property surcharge adds 5 percentage points to every stamp duty band when the purchase leaves you owning more than one dwelling.

It catches second homes, buy-to-lets, and movers who complete their purchase before their sale. Replacing your main residence exempts you, or refunds you if the timing forced an overlap.

Related: Surcharge refund, Let-to-buy

Surcharge refund

A surcharge refund returns the additional-property stamp duty to movers who paid it because they bought before selling, once the old main home sells within the time limit.

Claimed from HMRC after the old home completes, currently within a three-year window in normal cases. Bridging buyers should budget the surcharge as a deposit, not a cost.

Related: Additional property surcharge

Non-resident surcharge

The non-resident surcharge adds 2 percentage points to stamp duty for buyers who are not UK resident under the SDLT residence test.

It stacks on top of the other rates, including the additional-property surcharge where both apply. Residence for this test has its own definition, distinct from tax residence generally.

Related: Stamp duty land tax (SDLT)

Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT)

LBTT is Scotland's equivalent of stamp duty, with its own bands and rates set by the Scottish Government.

Same sliced structure, different numbers, plus first-time buyer relief of its own. A Scottish purchase is priced with LBTT tables, not SDLT ones.

Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS)

The Additional Dwelling Supplement is Scotland's surcharge on buying an additional residential property, added on top of LBTT.

Meaningfully higher than the English equivalent, with its own replacement-of-main-residence rules and reclaim windows.

Land Transaction Tax (LTT)

LTT is Wales's property purchase tax, with bands and rates set by the Welsh Government.

Notably, Wales has no first-time buyer relief; its starting threshold does the work instead. Higher rates apply to additional properties, as elsewhere.

SDLT return

The SDLT return is the tax filing submitted to HMRC after completion, due with any payment within 14 days.

Your solicitor files it and takes the tax at completion; the Land Registry will not register the purchase without the receipt. Filed even when no tax is due, in most cases.

Capital gains tax on property

Also known as: CGT

Capital gains tax is charged on the profit when you sell a UK residential property that is not your main home, at 18% within the basic rate band and 24% above it.

Buy-to-lets, second homes and inherited properties sold at a gain are its territory. The gain is the sale price minus purchase cost, improvement costs and selling costs.

Private residence relief

Private residence relief is the exemption that makes the sale of your own main home free of capital gains tax for the time you lived in it.

It is why most homeowners never meet CGT. Letting the home out, long absences, or very large grounds can erode the relief; the final nine months of ownership are relieved regardless.

Related: Capital gains tax on property

Annual exempt amount

Also known as: CGT allowance

The annual exempt amount is the slice of capital gains each person can realise tax-free in a tax year, £3,000 for 2026-27.

Jointly owned property doubles it across the owners. Far smaller than it used to be, which pulls more modest gains into charge.

Related: Capital gains tax on property

The 60-day CGT reporting deadline

Capital gains tax on a UK residential property sale must be reported and paid within 60 days of completion.

A separate, faster deadline than the annual tax return, with penalties and interest for missing it. Executors and landlords are the usual casualties; diarise it at exchange.

Related: Capital gains tax on property

Inheritance tax (property context)

Also known as: IHT

Inheritance tax is charged on estates above the tax-free thresholds, with the family home enjoying an extra allowance when left to direct descendants.

The standard nil-rate band is £325,000, topped by the residence nil-rate band for homes passing to children or grandchildren. The property's date-of-death valuation is what the calculation stands on.

Probate fee

The probate application fee is £526 for estates over £5,000, and nothing for estates at or below it.

Extra copies of the grant cost £2 each ordered upfront and £16 afterwards, so order spares with the application. The fee rose sharply in July 2026; older guides quote £300.

Related: Probate and grant of probate

Council tax band

A council tax band is the valuation category, A to H, that sets a home's council tax, based in England on 1991 property values.

Bands appear in listings as required material information. Challenges are possible with evidence, and occasionally backfire into a higher band.

Related: Material information

Empty home and second home council tax premiums

Council tax premiums let councils charge extra, up to double or more, on long-term empty homes and second homes.

Adopted council by council, and a live cost for anyone holding an inherited or in-between property. The empty home you are slowly selling may be accruing premium council tax while you deliberate.

Related: Probate sale

Conveyancing fee

The conveyancing fee is what your solicitor or conveyancer charges for their legal work on a sale or purchase, separate from the disbursements they pay out.

Quotes should split fee from disbursements and state VAT. Selling is cheaper than buying; leasehold costs more than freehold everywhere.

Related: Disbursements, Abortive fee

Disbursements

Disbursements are the third-party costs a conveyancer pays on your behalf, such as searches, Land Registry fees and bank transfer charges, passed through at cost.

They sit on top of the legal fee and vary with the property. A quote that looks cheap sometimes just hides them; insist on the itemised version.

Related: Search fees, Land Registry fee

Abortive fee

An abortive fee is what a conveyancer charges for work done when a transaction collapses before completion.

Some firms offer no-sale-no-fee protection instead, occasionally via a small insurance premium. Which basis you are on is a question for the first phone call, not the last.

No sale no fee (legal work)

No sale no fee conveyancing waives the legal fee if the transaction falls through, though disbursements already spent are usually still payable.

Worth genuine money in a chain-collapse market. Read what counts as a fall-through and what is still charged; the phrase is a headline, the terms are the product.

Related: Abortive fee

Search fees

Search fees are the charges for the official property searches a buyer's conveyancer orders, typically a few hundred pounds as a package.

Costs vary mainly with the local council's own pricing. Sellers do not pay them; buyers pay them and lose them if the sale dies, which is why ordered searches signal a committed buyer.

Related: Searches, Disbursements

Land Registry fee

The Land Registry fee is the government charge for registering a purchase or transfer, scaled to the property's price.

Paid by the buyer through their solicitor, with cheaper rates for digital applications. One of the smaller certainties on the completion statement.

Related: AP1, Disbursements

Telegraphic transfer fee

Also known as: TT fee, CHAPS fee, bank transfer fee

The telegraphic transfer fee is the bank charge for each same-day CHAPS payment in a transaction, a few tens of pounds a time.

One to redeem your mortgage, one to send your proceeds: they appear per payment on the completion statement. Small, standard, and worth recognising rather than querying.

Redemption figure

The redemption figure is the exact amount required to pay off your mortgage completely on a stated day, including interest to that day and any charges.

Your solicitor requests it for completion; you can request one any time to see your true equity. It moves daily, which is why it is always quoted to a date.

Redemption statement

A redemption statement is the lender's formal breakdown of the redemption figure: balance, interest, early repayment charges and admin fees.

Read the ERC line before committing to a completion date; timing completion a month later occasionally saves thousands when a fixed deal is about to end.

Estate agent commission and VAT

Estate agent commission is charged plus VAT at 20% unless the quote explicitly says VAT is included.

A 1.2% fee is 1.44% with VAT on top, which on an average home is hundreds of pounds of difference. The only quote worth comparing is the VAT-inclusive one, in writing.

VAT on fees

VAT at 20% applies to most professional fees in a move: agents, conveyancers, surveyors and removers.

Some disbursements pass through without VAT, which is why quotes mix both. The habit that protects you is one question: is that figure inclusive?

EPC cost

An EPC costs roughly £35 to £120 from an accredited assessor, and is only needed if the property has no valid certificate already.

EPCs last ten years, so check the national register before buying a new one. Agents can arrange it; you are free to book it cheaper yourself.

Removal costs

Removal costs are what you pay a firm to move your belongings, scaling with distance, volume and packing services.

From van-hire money for a flat to four figures for a packed family house move. Completion-day scheduling matters more than price: a good firm holds your date through a wobble.

Exchange deposit vs mortgage deposit

Also known as: the two deposits

The exchange deposit is the contractual sum paid to the seller's side at exchange, while the mortgage deposit is your equity contribution to the purchase price; they are two roles usually played by the same money.

Confusion arrives when the mortgage deposit is 5% but the contract wants 10% at exchange, bridged by negotiation or by deposits passed up a chain. Your solicitor choreographs it; you just need to know there are not two separate bills.

Cost of moving (the full bill)

The full cost of moving is everything stacked together: agent fees, conveyancing, searches, surveys, stamp duty, removals and the transfer fees in between.

Sellers mostly pay the agent and legals; buyers mostly pay the tax, searches and survey. Price the whole journey before it starts and nothing on the completion statement stings.

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