Thousands of homeowners in Merseyside could be owed up to £100,000 in a Stamp Duty refund.
The government are currently offering a stamp duty holiday, meaning that people don't have to pay it if the home they are buying is under £500,000.
But this nine month holiday is ending in March 2021 with experts predicting this will cause even more confusion around the already poorly understand tax.
Recently, properties with an annex have become a popular choice among buyers looking for somewhere with long-term flexibility.
According to classified property search engine Trovit, there are currently 1,019 properties with self contained annexes for sale in the UK, 8.6% of which are located in Liverpool.
And a little known benefit of owning a property with an annex is that you could be eligible for Multiple Dwellings Relief, meaning you could pay a reduced stamp duty fee.
However stamp duty specialists Cornerstone Tax has found that 3,500 families in Liverpool who have an annex may not have been advised that they should have paid a reduced rate of stamp duty and are therefore due a refund.
The amount of stamp duty refunds that people receive from HMRC varies significantly depending on the value of the property.
Homes with separate annexes tend to be higher value than the average home, so refunds could be anywhere from £10,000 to £100,000.
In a recent case study from Cornerstone Tax, they helped save a homebuyer almost £100,000 in stamp duty.
If you think you are due a refund and have overpaid on stamp duty you should contact HMRC, who may issue you with a tax refund.
David Hannah, principle consultant and founder of Cornerstone Tax, said: "This research demonstrates a lack of clarity in and around stamp duty land tax, both by the public and by the legal sector.
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"Millions of properties across the UK could qualify for reduced stamp duty rates, if for example, they have a self contained side annex as part of the property. In these cases, solicitors have a duty of care to inform their customers of all potential stamp duty reductions, including where Multiple Dwellings Relief is available.
"The mistakes being made are in almost all cases totally unintentional and otherwise made in fear of underpaying. Most legal professionals are ill-equipped to navigate the complex rules around it and need help.
"The law around SDLT is incredibly complex and many advisors who help homebuyers evaluate how much they should pay are trained only to differentiate between residential and commercial property.
"They simply aren’t familiar with the intricacies of the law’s evaluation criteria, which has led to many being mis-advised unintentionally.
"There are a number of other reasons why people have overpaid; it’s not always a misinterpretation of the 3% surcharge."
