Stamp Duty Land Tax Handbook: A Guide for Residential Conveyancers (2nd edition)

Dealing with stamp duty land tax is getting more and more difficult. I think many practitioners find the Stamp Duty Land Tax Manual difficult to navigate, if not actually inscrutable. This book takes a dry subject and makes it readable and understandable.

It includes plenty of good stuff. I particularly liked the section on exempt interests, and there is a great piece on identifying what makes a lease and what makes a licence, which should be handed out to all land lawyers at the start of their career.

There are excellent checklists in the appendices at the back of the book which include a reference to ‘human purchasers only’ (which made me chuckle), and also an appendix which deals with Potential Problem Areas. These were helpful in focusing the mind on the things one should be asking.

Multiple dwelling relief, the current SDLT hot potato, is considered in a measured manner. Leasehold interests are covered in solid detail. Even a subject as opaque as taxation in the case of collective enfranchisement is approached in a manageable way, while still providing thorough coverage.

With comprehensive indexing, as well as clear signposting throughout, this book would be a good choice as a learning tool for those new to land law. It could also serve as a reference book for more experienced practitioners. Accountants and other professionals working in the tax sphere would also find plenty to take away here, even though the book is aimed primarily at residential conveyancers.

The price is a hefty £125 which is more than I would like to pay, especially for something with such a finite life.

As an aside, some of us are ancient enough to look back wistfully on the days of ad valorem. Well, we are not going back to it – it has been 20 years, so perhaps now is the time to get over it? Buy this book instead. You won’t regret it.

Anna Newport is a solicitor and director at Newport Land & Law, West Yorkshire