Q&A

Stamp duty and couples: My partner and I will be buying an apartment early this year. I am a first-time buyer, my partner is not, but we have been told that, as he owned before, we will have to pay stamp duty. Could the property be put in my name to avoid duty and what are the implications?

A: Have you both gone to a mortgage lender and been jointly assessed on the basis of both your incomes? If so, the lender will require that you are co-owners and, given this, your partner's previous purchase means stamp duty applies. If your own income and savings enable you to draw down the mortgage yourself, then buy the property yourself. As a first-timer, you won't be subject to stamp duty on a new apartment or a second-hand one on or below €317,500. I assume by "partner" you are not married so, if you were the sole owner of the property and your partner moved in and contributed to the maintenance and repayments, then he should sort out a legal agreement to protect his investment if you split up. He might also feel he lives in "your" house instead of "our" house. It could get very messy.

Selling contract to purchase: I am a first-time buyer and I put a deposit on an apartment last October, and signed a contract to purchase. The property is due to be completed in March. I have since found a house I prefer and a friend is willing to buy my contract for the apartment and go through with the sale (at a slightly reduced rate). Will I still be considered as a first-time buyer? I don't want to pay stamp duty?

A: It would be unusual for a contract for a new apartment or house in a large scheme not to have a clause precluding you from selling on until you have completed the sale. This is to prevent speculation. Selling on contracts is fairly common in the UK where such a clause is not so usual. If you can sell on this contract, then the Revenue might take the view that the contract to purchase the apartment and its subsequent sale meant that you are an investor and should have been subject to stamp duty - so you would end up paying stamp duty twice, on the apartment and the preferred house. This is true if you go ahead and complete the sale in March and sell on to your friend then. Get a solicitor to look at your contract and see what your options are.

Budget behind bidding war: I was in a bidding war for a house in November. There were three parties and the price rose to €313,500. My bid was accepted by the seller and, a week later on the day I was due to hand over the deposit to the auctioneer (the day after the Budget), he informed me that the seller was looking for a higher price. The underbidder, a first-time buyer, came back with a higher bid I couldn't match. I feel very aggrieved. I'd invested time and money. I had put my own apartment on the market and the sale was agreed. Do I have any comeback?

A: No. It's easy to see what happened here. The Budget meant that the first-time buyer underbidder had nearly €12,000 extra. In a private treaty sale nothing is binding until contracts have been exchanged.

Send your queries to Property Questions, The Irish Times, 10-16 D'Olier Street, Dublin 2 or e-mail propertyquestions@irish-times.ie.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to respond to all questions. The above is a representative sample of queries received. This column is a readers' service and is not intended to replace professional advice. No individual correspondence will be entered into.