The purchase of a derelict bungalow and land acquired for demolition and the building of a new dwelling on site was not subject to higher rates of stamp duty land tax, as it was not suitable for use as a dwelling at the date of the transaction. 

The appellant company purchased a bungalow with land in Weston-super-Mare in January 2017 for £200,000. A planning permission application had previously been made for the demolition of the bungalow and the erection of a replacement building. A demolition survey had identified asbestos-containing materials in the bungalow, and its recommendation was for the urgent removal of those materials.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) opened an enquiry into the appellant’s stamp duty land tax (SDLT) return. HMRC subsequently concluded that the transaction met all the conditions in FA 2003, Sch 4ZA, which made it a chargeable transaction