Will stamp duty be cut for 1st-time buyers in the Budget? Watch this space

First-time buyers will be watching Chancellor Philip Hammond with a keen eye on November 22. Informed voice say the Chancellor will announce a cut in stamp duty for first-time buyers when he stands up in the House of Commons to deliver his first-ever autumn Budget.

Stamp duty reform is one of the big talking points in the property market at the moment– the trade body for estate agents, NAEA Propertymark, has made a submission to the Treasury asking for exemptions for both first-time buyers and older sellers downsizing from larger properties.

Financial burden on younger people

But it’s the financial burden it imposes on young buyers, particularly those attempting to get on to the property ladder in London, that has attracted most interest ahead of next month’s Budget. The average price of a property is London stands at £428,456, adding to a stamp duty bill of around £14,000 on a purchase.

Stamp duty must be paid on all properties valued above £125,000, imposed on a sliding scale from 2 percent for those costing up to £500,000 to 12 percent for properties valued at more than £1.5 million. Second properties attract higher stamp duty rates.

A report in the Evening Standard quoted a Tory source saying the Chancellor was ready to adopt “bold measures” to help those in their 20s and 30s who have been locked out of property ownership by stagnating wages, spiralling property prices and shortage of supply.

Seizing the political initiative

Their source said: “The Budget is a good opportunity to seize the political initiative domestically through bold measures on issues like housing.”

Along with initiatives such as London mayor Sadiq Khan’s housing strategy to build 90,000 more affordable homes in the capital by 2021, any reduction in stamp duty would surely be a boost not only to younger house buyers in London but also those across the UK.