When is a house a home? Answering a rather taxing question

The question of whether a property is someone's main residence has long been associated with capital gains tax (CGT) due to the relief available on the sale of a ‘principal private residence'. However, the recent case of Cohen v HMRC has shown that it is also relevant to stamp duty land tax (SDLT) as it is possible to replace your main residence without suffering the higher rates of SDLT on the purchase. But what exactly is a ‘main residence'? In short, there is no hard and fast definition. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) gives very little guidance on the meaning of residence, merely s...