Joint Purchase Additional Rate SDLT Considerations

[garnetbridge]

Hello all,

My partner and I (unmarried and not in a civil partnership) are looking to jointly purchase a property. She already owns a flat solely in her name that she will keep for work. I have just sold my previous home but looking to buy a new property closer to my work which is 2+ hours away. As she would own two properties on the day of purchase I believe we would be liable to pay the additional rate SDLT.

My Question: I have spotted a number of houses that are within my individual budget (with a mortgage) but would require further work to renovate. If I purchased one of those properties solely in my name, thereby paying the normal rate of SDLT, then my partner buys a share from me with her equity (our equities are roughly equal) to pay for extension/renovation, would she only pay the additional rate stamp duty on that second purchase i.e. avoiding the 8% hit above 250k and thereby giving us jointly an overall lower SDLT charge?

Or, is there a better way of structuring this?

[SDLT Geek]

You could look into a joint borrower sole proprietor mortgage to fund the purchase. Your girlfriend would be accepting full liability on the mortgage without having any share in the property, so it might not suit her.