SD misleading calculation by solicitor

I am buying a second property and I am planning to put my sister's name on the title deed and my name only will be on the mortgage.
I did my research and consulted you experts in AAM re SD calculation and my undrestanding that I have to pay SD at the highest rate - which is fine by me .

Talking to my solicitor , she informed me we will qualify for FTB rate based on my sister is FTB . I came back to confirm with the solicitor and she said I am very positive that we will pay FTB rate .

while I was shopping around for solicitors , couple of them informed me that I have to pay SD at investor rate .

I am confused now , shall I put the SD money difference aside waiting for my solicitor to come back to me with the expected "surprise " or shall I go ahead and trust her or shall I find another solicitor ?

Thanks for your support and advice

When I was was buying my house I was told by my solicitor I had to pay 15k stamp duty and than it changed to 4k - in the end I wasn't liable full stop for it. Solicitors do get it wrong. My understanding of your situation (and somone correct me if i'm wrong) is you will be liable for stamp duty as you are not a first time buyer even though your name isn't going on title deeds.

I don't quite understand what you are doing. If your name is not on the deeds then it cannot be on the mortgage. If your name is on the mortgage with your sister but not on the deeds then there is a possibility, if your sister is going to be living in the house and is a first-time-buyer, that she may qualify as a first time buyer, if it is not your intention to make any mortgage repayments in the normal course (see revenue leaflet on first-time buyers). But you refer to the house as yours so this doesn't seem likely. Maybe your solicitor is confused or does not understand your intentions. How far along is you transaction? Why is your sister going on the deeds ?

Thanks for your reply . As mentioned in previous thread , my sister is going to be in employment hopefully in 6-8 months , then, she will look after the mortgage on her own , my intension is to support her till she is qualified by the bank to get mortgage , hopefully soon , she is doctor BTW.

Between me and my sister , the money is all hers as she has other income from our home country . I was honest with the bank and I have nothing to hide .
With the bank , they approved the mortagage based on my income .
Finally , my sister is going to stay in the house and it will be her PPR.
what do you reckon ? what SD we are qualified for ?

Based on the information you have posted in your second post, it seems that your sister will be the true owner\beneficial owner; in other words, you will not have an ownership interest of any sort in the house. This being the case, your solicitor is quite correct - there will be no stamp duty if your sister is a FTB and price is under €317,500.00

Your initial post stated:

"I am buying a second property and I am planning to put my sister's name on the title deed"

this suggested that you would have some rights - that your sister would in some way be holding the property in trust for you. In such a situation, the FTB exemption would not apply. It may be that you inadvertently made some such comment to solicitors while shopping around, hence resulting in conflicting opinions.

You should put her name only on the deed.

Put both your names on the mortgage or better still put her name on the mortgage and you act as guarantor. That way she is the owner of the house, is a FTB, pays no stamp duty and if she sells in a few years - pays no CGT as it is her PPR.

How acting as "guarentor" works in this case ?

Do you mean the bank approves the mortgage based on my income and put my sister's name on the motgage , then the bank doesn't care who is paying the motgage as long as the guarentor is financially able to cover it ?
Do we need to open a join account to feed the payment then ?

Thanks

It will be just your sister's name on the mortgage.

Acting as guarantor means you will have to meet the monthly repayment if she can't. From your previous post, your sister will be able to handle the mortgage on her own in 6-8 months. Therefore, I would try to arrange with the bank for you to act as guarantor and keep your name off the mortgage and deeds.

I went for your advice , but the bank told me that she has to be in full eployment with stamp 4 before she gets the mortgage .
Is that the deal with all banks or I should shop around ?
Can she benefit from releasing equity from my current appartment ?

regards

I would shop around, go to different lenders, maybe go to a mortage broker and make your case that she will be in employment soon. Worth trying.

To qualify for first time buyer stamp duty rates where there is a guarantor all four of the following conditions must be met.

• The transfer of the house is taken in the name of the first time buyer.
• It is the intention of both the first time buyer and the other person that the other person is not to take a beneficial interest in the house.
• The other person has been joined into the mortgage solely at the request of the lending institution for the purpose of providing additional security for the monies being advanced for the purchase.
• It is not intended that the other person will be contributing to the repayment of the mortgage in the normal course.

You may have a problem with point three and possibly point four if her other income is not certified.