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Stamp Duty on a landlord's next buy-to-let: the extra 5% worked on £180,000, £300,000 and £450,000
A landlord buying another home pays 5% extra SDLT on each band. Worked on £180,000, £300,000 and £450,000 using GOV.UK rates, with the 3-year refund rule.
A landlord client mentions a second or third purchase and asks, "what will the Stamp Duty be?" Many remember the standard bands and forget the surcharge, so the number they have in their head is far too low. An agent who can give a sound estimate on the call is useful, as long as it is clear that the solicitor confirms the final figure.
What GOV.UK says
The GOV.UK page on buying an additional residential property lists the higher rates from 1 April 2025:
- up to £125,000: 5%
- £125,001 to £250,000: 7%
- £250,001 to £925,000: 10%
- £925,001 to £1.5 million: 15%
- above £1.5 million: 17%
The GOV.UK residential rates page lists the standard bands: nil to £125,000, then 2%, 5%, 10% and 12%, and says you usually pay 5% on top of these rates if you own another residential property. Each higher rate in the first table is the standard rate plus 5 points, which is how I checked the two pages agree.
The first page also says that if you sell or give away your previous main home within 3 years of buying the new one, you can apply for a refund of the higher-rate part. It says no refund is available if you or your spouse still own part of the previous home.
The sum
Each band is charged only on the slice of price inside it.
| Price | Standard working | Higher-rate working | Standard | Higher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £180,000 | £55,000 x 2% | £125,000 x 5% + £55,000 x 7% = £6,250 + £3,850 | £1,100 | £10,100 |
| £300,000 | £125,000 x 2% + £50,000 x 5% = £2,500 + £2,500 | £6,250 + £125,000 x 7% + £50,000 x 10% = £6,250 + £8,750 + £5,000 | £5,000 | £20,000 |
| £450,000 | £2,500 + £200,000 x 5% = £2,500 + £10,000 | £6,250 + £8,750 + £200,000 x 10% = £6,250 + £8,750 + £20,000 | £12,500 | £35,000 |
The extra cost is 5% of the whole price: £9,000 on £180,000, £15,000 on £300,000 and £22,500 on £450,000. The cheaper the property, the larger the surcharge looks against the standard bill, which is why a landlord comparing two cheap flats may be surprised.
What to do with the figure
- Give it as a range and name the assumptions. The sum assumes England and Northern Ireland, one purchase and no reliefs.
- Put it beside the tax on the other side. A landlord weighing a sale and a purchase should see Capital Gains Tax on a landlord's sale.
- Check the running costs. Finance costs are restricted: see the mortgage interest tax reduction.
- Check what the rent can be claimed against. See the property allowance or expenses.
What I did not read
I did not read the rules on what counts as an additional dwelling, companies and trusts buying property, the 2% non-UK resident surcharge sums, Scotland's and Wales's separate taxes, multiple-dwellings relief, or how mixed-use and linked purchases are treated. The residential page gave no start date for the standard bands, so I have used them as the current table. I did not check for changes after 19 October 2026.
Overlyft 
builds AI staff who join your agency team and take a landlord's purchase price, work out the Stamp Duty estimate from the dated GOV.UK bands and show the band-by-band sum for a negotiator to confirm before it is sent.
This is general information, not legal or financial advice. Check the GOV.UK pages and take a solicitor's figure for the landlord's case.
Where this comes from: GOV.UK, "Stamp Duty Land Tax: buying an additional residential property" (higher rates from 1 April 2025: 5% up to £125,000, 7% to £250,000, 10% to £925,000, 15% to £1.5 million, 17% above; refund of the higher part if the previous main home is sold within 3 years) and GOV.UK, "Residential property rates" (standard bands: nil to £125,000, 2% to £250,000, 5% to £925,000, 10% to £1.5 million, 12% above; 5% on top if you own another residential property). Read 19 October 2026.
AEO Lookup editorial team
We write practical guides for people who run small UK firms, and we check every fact against its source on the date shown. Read how we review, or tell us if something has changed.
