Budget decision on Stamp Duty is not enough, says property solicitor Warners

Warners Solicitors and Estate Agents Blog

Warners estate agency partner Scott BrownProperty solicitor Warners has responded to the decision by Chancellor Alistair Darling to extend the Stamp Duty “holiday” on properties up to £175,000 by a further three months.

Following this week’s Budget announcement, Scott Brown, Estate Agency Partner at Warners, said: “Although this is a welcome step, but more is still needed to reinvigorate the property market.

“Although we are starting to see signs of house prices levelling out, there are still many people who are not confident enough – or cannot afford to – make their next move along the property ladder.

“A longer extension to the Stamp Duty ‘holiday’ on properties worth up to £175,000 would have been a better decision, as it would have shown that the government is willing to tackle the property market as part of a long-term strategy.

“I would also have liked to see him increase the Stamp Duty holiday so that it was frozen on all properties up to £250,000, and a sliding scale introduced on homes higher than this value.

“At the moment, this policy provides a welcome boost to first time buyers but little for people in larger homes looking to make their next move along the property ladder.

“Given that people often plan a house move four or five months in advance, the Chancellor is going to have to make a further announcement or decision on stamp duty as early as August this year. If, as it stands, the base level for paying stamp duty returns to £125,000 in January 2010, that will only serve to hamper a property market which is trying to recover.”