They say that the only two things you can take for granted are death and taxes. Well, boy oh boy, is this a tax ! Government stamp duty is quite a significant and unfortunately unavoidable cost that comes with buying a property. It applies to purchases only though, not refinancing. This is because stamp duty only applies to when the name of the owner changes, which is not the case with a refinance.

Here is a guideline only of the different stamp duty rates and how they can vary from state to state.