Scottish home-buying cash calculator
Buying in Scotland has two cash questions that ordinary UK calculators miss: Land and Buildings Transaction Tax has its own bands and its own first-time buyer relief, and in an offers-over sale the price agreed can sit above the Home Report valuation a mortgage is measured against. This tool shows both, with the arithmetic visible at every step.
What this tool does not do
It does not work out what you could borrow, assess affordability or eligibility, predict a lender's valuation, or recommend a lender, product or adviser. It is not a tax calculation and not tax advice. Every figure you enter is your own assumption, and every figure it returns is an illustration.
How the arithmetic works
Cash towards the price = purchase price − mortgage amount. Amount above the valuation = purchase price − valuation figure, where the price is higher. Loan-to-value = (mortgage amount ÷ the chosen figure) × 100. LBTT is worked out slice by slice across the published bands, then first-time buyer relief is applied by moving the nil-rate threshold and capping the benefit, and any Additional Dwelling Supplement illustration is added afterwards. The illustrative cash figure adds the cash towards the price to the illustrative LBTT — nothing else.
Legal fees, any survey you commission, removals and any lender fee are deliberately excluded, because we have no basis for estimating them.
Where the tax figures come from
- Residential property (LBTT rates and bands) — Revenue Scotland. Checked 2026-08-30. Source for the residential band thresholds and percentage rates in force from 1 April 2021, and for LBTT being charged on a progressive slice basis.
- LBTT3048 - First-time buyer relief — Revenue Scotland. Checked 2026-08-30. Source for the raised nil-rate threshold for qualifying first-time buyers and the maximum reduction the relief can produce. The qualifying conditions are Revenue Scotland's.
- The Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) — Revenue Scotland. Checked 2026-08-30. Source for the current 8% ADS rate applying to transactions on or after 5 December 2024, the minimum relevant consideration, and the existence of conditions, exceptions and repayment rules that this tool does not assess.
- About the calculators (LBTT is a self-assessed tax) — Revenue Scotland. Checked 2026-08-30. Source for LBTT being a self-assessed tax administered by Revenue Scotland, with the return and payment obligation sitting with the buyer, normally through their solicitor.
Scotland
Read the process behind the numbers
The arithmetic only helps if you know when the money is needed. Our Scottish guides cover the Home Report, noting interest and closing dates, missives and the date of entry, and how LBTT first-time buyer relief is defined.
Common questions
Questions about this calculator
What does this calculator actually work out?
Three things, kept separate: the cash you would need towards the price alongside the mortgage amount you enter, the gap between the price and the valuation figure you hold, and illustrative Land and Buildings Transaction Tax worked out band by band. It does not work out what you could borrow.
Is this a Revenue Scotland tax calculation?
No. LBTT is a self-assessed tax: the return and the amount are the buyer's responsibility, normally handled by a solicitor. This is arithmetic over Revenue Scotland's published bands so you can see how the figure is built up. Revenue Scotland publishes its own calculator and does not accept liability for calculator output — nor do we.
Why does it ask for a valuation figure as well as a price?
Because in Scotland the seller provides a Home Report containing a valuation, and in a competitive sale the price agreed can exceed it. A mortgage is calculated against a valuation figure, so any amount above the figure used has to be found in cash. We cannot tell you which figure a lender would use.
Does it include legal fees and survey costs?
No, and that is deliberate. We have no basis for estimating your solicitor's fees, any survey you commission, removals or any lender fee, so inventing figures would make the total less honest rather than more useful. Ask your solicitor for a written estimate.
Why is the Additional Dwelling Supplement a checkbox rather than automatic?
Because ADS has conditions, exceptions and repayment rules — including for buyers replacing a main residence, joint buyers and inherited property — that a yes/no answer cannot capture. It is offered as a scenario you can choose to illustrate, clearly labelled as 'may apply', never as a determination of liability.
Does using this tool tell me whether I can get a mortgage?
No. Nothing here assesses affordability, eligibility or creditworthiness, and nothing here recommends a lender, product or adviser. It is educational preparation. For advice on a mortgage, speak to a suitably qualified FCA-authorised mortgage adviser.
Related guidance
Optional educational preparation resources. Nothing here is mortgage advice, a lender or product recommendation, an eligibility assessment or a prediction of whether an application would be accepted.
- Mortgage Preparation Starter Checklist — free
A one-page starting point for the paperwork most people are asked for.
- Readiness checker
Eight broad preparation questions. It never says whether you would be eligible, approved or declined.
- First-Time Buyer Preparation Planner — £7.99
A preparation resource, not mortgage advice or a lender recommendation. Purchases are not switched on yet.
Independent advice
When you need personal advice
Preparation and advice are two different things. We can help you get organised; only a suitably qualified, FCA-authorised mortgage adviser can advise you on your own circumstances, assess what you may be able to borrow or recommend a product.
Before You Apply is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and is not a mortgage adviser, broker or lender. We provide educational preparation resources only. We do not give mortgage advice, recommend lenders or products, assess eligibility, arrange mortgages or introduce you to advisers. If you need advice about your own circumstances, contact a suitably qualified FCA-authorised mortgage adviser directly.
- Choose and contact an adviser independently. We do not introduce you to anyone, name any firm or receive any payment for anyone you contact.
- You can check whether a firm or individual is authorised on the Financial Conduct Authority’s public register before you share any information.
- Take your prepared documents and written questions with you — that is what this site is for.