Budget 2021 – Stamp Duty Extended, Mortgage Guarantee Scheme Re-introduced.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, confirmed yesterday an extension to Stamp Duty and the re-introduction of the somewhat controversial mortgage guarantee scheme; alleviating concerns that house prices may fall sharply should it have ended at the end of the month.
Until 30th June, purchases of properties less than £500,000 will continue to benefit from the nil rate charge and purchases of properties less than £250,000 will see this extension last until 30th September in order to keep the market stable and meet the demands of the reported 100,000 people who had been in danger of missing the previous deadline. These extensions relate only to purchases in England and Northern Ireland
zPlan welcome this move as a stability mechanism to keep the housing marketing moving and zPlan subscribers working at a time the economy needs it most. However, we feel this policy should continue to be reviewed, should the economy not begin to bounce back as expected or there are delays to lifting the Covid-19 restrictions.
Mr Sunak also announced “We want to turn generation rent into generation buy” by announcing a new version of the ‘Help to Buy Mortgage Guarantee Scheme’. Available to anyone purchasing a home worth up to £600,000, many lenders have signed up to offering Government backed 95% mortgages, meaning homebuyers will be able to put down only a 5% deposit.
zPlan again sees this as a positive step in ensuring the housing market is stimulated and offers the chance for many people to get onto the property ladder. However, we believe the Government must be even more innovative in the ways it encourages buyers to the market to ensure house prices don’t rocket and those on lower incomes are not left behind; especially with reports suggesting the schemes predecessor caused a sharp increase.
Full information on the Budget 2021 can be found HERE.