Yes — any SDLT refund you're owed is worth claiming. The refund size varies by property value and case type, but the claim process is the same: the DIY Claim Pack is £19.99 at any refund size and you keep the whole refund; a no-win-no-fee firm will run the claim for you instead, for a share of it.
Below: what to expect at each price band.
The quick reference table
Here's the summary. The detail for each bracket follows below.
| Property price | Typical refund |
|---|---|
| Under £250,000 | £0-£39 |
| £250,000-£500,000 | £48-£97 |
| £500,000-£925,000 | £48-£97 |
| £925,000-£1,500,000 | £97-£195 |
| £1,500,000+ | £116-£234 |
At every band, the DIY Claim Pack is the same £19.99 and you keep the whole refund; no-win-no-fee firms take a share of it instead.
Based on chattel values of £970-£1,950 for a typical three-bed set (these do not rise with the price of the property), at standard rates for completions from 1 April 2025.
Under £250,000: small or no refund
Properties under £250,000 fall entirely within the 0% and 2% SDLT bands for standard purchasers. The marginal rate on the portion where chattels would make a difference (£125,001-£250,000) is just 2%. Even with £1,950 of chattels (the top of the typical range), the SDLT saving is only £39 — so refunds in this band are small or nil.
Whichever route you choose, the process at HMRC is the same — the DIY Claim Pack is £19.99 and you keep the whole refund; a no-win-no-fee firm will run the claim for you instead, for a share of it.
First-time buyers
If you bought under £300,000 as a first-time buyer, you paid 0% SDLT. There's no overpayment to claim regardless of chattel values. First-time buyers only benefit from chattels claims if they paid above £300,000.
£250,000-£500,000: small refunds typical
In this bracket, the marginal SDLT rate on the chattel deduction is 5% (on the portion between £250,001 and £500,000). With typical chattels of £970-£1,950, the refund is £48-£97.
Whichever route you choose, the process at HMRC is the same — the DIY Claim Pack is £19.99 and you keep the whole refund; a no-win-no-fee firm will run the claim for you instead, for a share of it.
£500,000-£925,000: still the 5% rate
The marginal SDLT rate is still 5%, so the refund is the same as in the band below: second-hand chattel values do not rise with the price of the house.
Typical chattels values of £970-£1,950 produce refunds of £48-£97.
Whichever route you choose, the process at HMRC is the same — the DIY Claim Pack is £19.99 and you keep the whole refund; a no-win-no-fee firm will run the claim for you instead, for a share of it.
£925,000-£1,500,000: the 10% band
Above £925,000, the marginal SDLT rate jumps to 10%. This means every £1 of chattel deduction saves 10p in stamp duty — double the saving per pound compared to the 5% band.
The same £970-£1,950 of chattels produces refunds of £97-£195.
Whichever route you choose, the process at HMRC is the same — the DIY Claim Pack is £19.99 and you keep the whole refund; a no-win-no-fee firm will run the claim for you instead, for a share of it.
Additional property surcharge
If you paid the 5% additional property surcharge that applies to completions from 31 October 2024 (buy-to-let or second home — see our second-home surcharge refund guide), the effective marginal rate on chattels is even higher: 10% + 5% = 15%. A £1,200 chattel deduction at the 15% effective rate saves £180.
Not sure if you overpaid stamp duty?
The free Refund Checker screens your purchase against every SDLT refund route in about two minutes. No email needed to see your result.
Take the free 2-minute Refund Checker →£1,500,000+: the 12% band
Above £1,500,000, the marginal SDLT rate is 12% — the highest residential rate. The same £970-£1,950 of chattels saves £116-£234.
For additional property buyers paying the surcharge — 5% since 31 October 2024, 3% before that — the effective marginal rate is higher still: at 5%, the same chattels save £165-£332.
Whichever route you choose, the process at HMRC is the same — the DIY Claim Pack is £19.99 and you keep the whole refund; a no-win-no-fee firm will run the claim for you instead, for a share of it.
Furnished vs unfurnished
The numbers above use the full £970-£1,950 range for a typical three-bed set. If your property was purchased fully furnished — with a sofa, beds and white goods included in the sale — its total sits towards the top of that range rather than the bottom.
On a £500,000 purchase (rates from 1 April 2025) that is a refund of about £97 rather than £48.
This is particularly relevant for:
- Buy-to-let properties sold as furnished investments — see our BTL refund guide
- Properties bought from elderly sellers who included furniture in the sale
- Properties sold with full contents as part of a probate or estate sale
How each route's economics compare
Specialist firms work on a no-win, no-fee basis. Their typical fee is 25-40% of any successful refund, charged only when the claim succeeds. The DIY Claim Pack is a flat £19.99 — paid upfront, you keep 100% of any refund you go on to receive.
Net £ in your pocket therefore varies by refund size. A larger refund means a larger absolute specialist fee, but also a larger absolute net amount. A smaller refund means a smaller fee in pounds, but also a smaller net amount. Specialists don't turn down small claims — they work on the same no-win, no-fee terms at any refund size.
Which route makes sense for you depends on whether you'd rather pay a flat £19.99 and handle the claim yourself, or pay a percentage only on success and have the specialist handle the claim end-to-end. Both routes work at any refund size.
Which route to take
The claim is one you are entitled to make yourself, and the DIY Claim Pack is built for exactly that: £19.99 once, and you keep the whole refund. A no-win-no-fee firm will handle the paperwork, evidence pack and HMRC correspondence for you instead, with no upfront cost and no fee if the claim fails — in exchange for 25–40% of anything you recover.
The DIY Claim Pack at £19.99 is the alternative if you'd prefer to handle the claim yourself and keep the full refund. It suits buyers who are comfortable with HMRC forms, have time to gather their own evidence, and want self-serve control of the process. Whichever route you choose, the claim process at HMRC is the same.
Never respond to an unsolicited letter or cold call. If you want to know where you stand, check if you're eligible for a refund yourself, for free, and decide from there.
Think you have a claim?
The DIY Claim Pack gives you step-by-step instructions, the exact HMRC forms, and template letters to file your refund yourself.
The Claim Pack is being updated — back soon