Lee Sharpe looks at the abolition of multiple dwellings relief, why it happened, and what options remain for landlords buying residential property.
The Spring Budget 2024 on 6 March 2024 announced that multiple dwellings relief (MDR) from stamp duty land tax (SDLT) would be abolished for purchases from 1 June 2024, albeit with provisions to protect ‘slow’ contracts exchanged on or before Budget Day but not completed by 1 June 2024.
The government reasoned that HMRC’s recent research had found no strong evidence that MDR had substantively succeeded in its aim of encouraging (or at least reducing disincentives to) residential property investment or increasing overall housing supply.
Note: As this is an SDLT measure, it applies only in England and Northern Ireland (although Scotland and Wales do have similar provisions in their land and building transactions tax (LBTT) and land
