Quantcast
Menu

First-time Buyers

Nearly 70,000 first-time buyers benefit from stamp duty cut

Paloma Kubiak
Written By:
Paloma Kubiak
Posted:
Updated:
27/04/2018

A total of 69,000 first-time buyers have saved money on their stamp duty bill in the first four months since the government’s property tax change came into effect.

On 22 November 2017, Chancellor Philip Hammond unveiled a sweetener for first-time buyers by announcing stamp duty would be cut for properties worth up to £300,000.

Effective immediately, it also applies to the first £300,000 for properties worth up to £500,000 purchased by first-time buyers.

At the time, Hammond said the move would bring savings for 95% of all first-time buyers who pay stamp duty while 80% of first-time buyers would pay no stamp duty at all, saving them up to £5,000.

Now the latest figures covering the period up until 31 March, reveal 69,000 have benefited from the government’s abolition of stamp duty on properties under £300,000.

However, exclusive research by our sister title, YourMoney, revealed Three surprising reasons where first-time buyers won’t qualify for the stamp duty cut.

The stamp duty savings are estimated at £159m, half of which (49%) was seen in London and the South East. The average amount saved by first-time buyers was £2,300, while in London the average was £4,300.

Financial secretary to the Treasury, Mel Stride, said: “I’m proud that the cut to stamp duty for first-time buyers is helping to realise the dream of homeownership for a new generation, alongside building more homes in the right areas, and generous schemes such as the Lifetime ISA and Help to Buy.”

Help to Buy figures

Separate figures also reveal more than 387,000 people have now used the government’s Help to Buy scheme, and over 1.1 million accounts have been opened with the Help to Buy ISA, offering government bonuses of up to £3,000.

In total, since the launch of the Help to Buy ISA, 128,328 property completions have been supported by the scheme, with 172,068 bonuses have been paid. The average bonus value is £767.

The median age of a first-time buyer in the Help to Buy scheme is 27, compared to a national first-time buyer median age of 30.

And, the mean value of a property purchased through the scheme is £172,076 compared to an average first-time buyer house price of £190,722 and a national average house price of £226,756.

Housing Minister, Dominic Raab, said: “It’s good to see a record number of people benefiting from our Help to Buy Equity Loan, so they can realise their dream of homeownership.

“Through this scheme we have helped almost 159,000 households get a foot on the housing ladder.”