Property sellers bear losses due to seller’s stamp duties

The higher stamp duty put in place since 2011 has led to hefty losses for some home sellers.

More than $70 million has been collected in seller’s stamp duty (SSD) for non-landed private property transactions since 5 years ago.

Since 14 Jan 2011, all properties sold within four years of its purchase would have incurred the higher SSD of 4% to 16%.

Properties sold within their first year of purchase would have to pay the maximum SSD of 16%, while those sold within two, three and four years of purchase would pay 12%, 8% and 4% respectively.

The higher SSD was put in place to discourage property speculation by motivating buyers to take a longer-term stance on their investment.

In the past year, at least 59 non-landed private home transactions suffered a loss after paying the SSD. For instance, a unit at Four Seasons Park incurred a total loss of $2.64 million after paying a 12% SSD of $1.14 million.

Mr Nicholas Mak, head of research and consultancy at SLP International said that these sellers choose to sell their homes despite a loss to reduce any further losses due to the market downturn.

For additional coverage, check out The Straits Times.

Conversely, you might also be interested in finding out how homebuyers have benefitted from new rules by URA.

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