The 0.48% property tax — ruled out rumoured

Three weeks out from the Budget, the 0.48% property tax is still off the table, and nothing has changed since Number 10 said in September that the reports were not true. Stamp duty is not being reformed on 28 October either. What the Budget does cover is business rates: a 20% cut for pubs, clubs and live music venues starts in April 2027, and wider reform has been promised on the day. Council tax on your own home carries on as it is. We will check this against the Budget documents on the day.

The 0.48% property tax is off the table. Number 10 has said the reports that council tax and stamp duty would be replaced by one annual charge on your home aren't true, and stamp duty isn't being reformed on 28 October. In plain terms: nothing changes for you this year — your council tax bill works the way it always has, and you'll pay the same stamp duty when you next buy. Worth knowing rather than worrying about, because the idea has come back three times now and it will come back again.

HMRC's going to start sending valuers round to homes near the £2m mark, to work out who's caught by the 'mansion tax' — the yearly surcharge (£2,500 up to £7,500, depending on value) that lands in April 2028. Visits are by appointment, but block one and it's a £200 fine, or up to £500 for not handing over details. Zoopla reckons about 183,000 homes are already over £2m, with another 75,000 sitting just below.