Halifax says 29% of detached property owners will pay IHT

nicolette botbol
16-Mar-2007
By Nicolette Botbol
Halifax research has shown that nearly one third of detached property owners in the UK could be liable to pay Inheritance Tax.

The bank says 29% of detached house prices now occur above the 2007/08 IHT threshold of 300,000 but five years ago only 16% of detached properties were sold above the then IHT threshold of 242,000.

Tim Crawford, group economist at Halifax, says: "House prices have risen at a much faster rate than the inheritance tax threshold over the past decade.

“That has led to a sharp rise in the number of homes valued above the threshold.

"Now, the average detached house in the UK is valued above the inheritance threshold of £300,000.

“We call on the government to raise the inheritance tax threshold to £460,000.

"That new level would account for the rise in property prices in the past decade."