- This topic has 1 reply, 2 voices, and was last updated 18th September 2018 at 11:45 am by
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Here’s a question which estate agents have not been able to answer satisfactorily. I currently own and reside in a mobile home. I wish to purchase a conventional bricks & mortar property in addition to the mobile home [which will be sold in due course]. In this instance, does the bricks and mortar property count as a second home regarding the higher rate of stamp duty, or, would I only pay the standard rate of stamp duty on my new purchase. I’m working on the theory that mobile home isn’t actually recognised as a “property”, therefore I wouldn’t own two properties, just two residences…if you see my point!
Hi David, I do see your point. For the purposes of the higher rate of SDLT to be caught you would have to own a major interest in another “dwelling” at the end of the day of purchase of your new home. I do not believe that a mobile home is a “dwelling” for this purpose because the definition of “dwelling” in the SDLT legislation is framed in terms of a building which implies a structure that is attached to the land in such a way as to be a fixture and not a moveable chattel. Of course if the mobile home has been fixed to the land in such a way as to have become a permanent fixture then it is likely to have become a building for this purpose but assuming that you can hitch the home to a vehicle and tow it away without any significant modification then the home is unlikely to be regarded as a building so that it will not count as a dwelling.
