Housing market could move closer to normality as stamp duty threshold halves 01/07/2021, 2:48 am The nil rate stamp duty threshold dropped from £500,000 to £250,000 on Thursday (Chris Ison/PA) The “nil rate” stamp duty threshold has been halved, in what could be the start of more normal levels of activity returning to the market. With the threshold having now fallen from £500,000 to £250,000 in England and Northern Ireland, buyers who missed Wednesday’s deadline could end up paying thousands of pounds more than they had budgeted for. But if they drop out now, they could miss the chance to make any stamp duty savings at all.