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The stamp duty holiday has been extended by six months until the end of September, an extension that includes a tapering of support, with the nil-rate band gradually lowering from June. The extension applies to all transactions in England and Northern Ireland, meaning buy-to-let investors will continue to benefit from the tax savings. The deadline for buyers to take advantage of the higher £500,000 nil-rate band has been extended by three months. This means that buyers can save up to £15,000 in tax if they can complete their sales by June 30. After this date, the nil-rate band will drop to £250,000 until September 30th, with the maximum tax savings falling to £2,500 during this period. From October 1st, the nil-rate band will fall back to its original level of £125,000.
The Daily Telegraph (03/03/2021) The Times (03/03/2021) Financial Times (03/03/2021)
Figures from Nationwide show that average UK house prices grew 6.9% year-on-year in February, up from the 6.4% growth recorded in January. The average price hit a record £231,068 last month, with this marking a 0.7% month-on-month increase following a 0.2% dip in January. Nationwide's chief economist Robert Gardner said the increase seen in February was a surprise, with growth having been expected to soften as the (then-expected) end of the stamp duty holiday neared. He added that “if labour market conditions weaken as most analysts expect, it is likely that the housing market will slow in the months ahead”.
BBC News (02/03/2021) Financial Times (02/03/2021)
Leading estate agents are reporting record levels of new buyer interest in prime London property in January, thanks to price adjustments, London's ongoing reputation as a safe haven for wealth, and pent-up demand to buy. The number of prospective buyers registering to view £10m plus properties more than doubled in the year to January, compared with the same 12-month period the year before.
Evening Standard (25/02/2021)
New provisional figures from HM Revenue & Customs show that the number of homes sold in the UK in January, at 121,640 was 24.1% higher than a year earlier and 2.4% lower than December 2020. However, transactions have been at their lowest in the financial year 2020/21 so far since the same period in 2012/13, when the total was 767,420. Former RICS residential chairman Jeremy Leaf said the fall between December and January indicated a “market paused for breath in reaction to further restrictions and another lockdown.”
Evening Standard (23/02/2021) The Daily Telegraph (23/02/2021)
Lloyds expects house prices to fall at the end of this year after reaching a record in 2020. The bank's latest forecasts predict price growth of 5.5% and 4.7% in the first and second quarters respectively. House prices are then expected to fall by 1.6% and 3.8% in the final two quarters of this year. Overall, house prices are forecast to fall by 3.8% this year, before rising by 0.5% in 2022 and 1.5% in the following two years. Lloyds also forecast a 1.7% fall in commercial property prices this year.
The Times (24/02.2021)
The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) has called for an extension of the stamp duty holiday, saying that keeping the March 31st cut-off for the relief could “jeopardise the recovery and deepen the housing crisis”. The think-tank says the relief measure put in place to support the property market amid the pandemic has prevented a collapse in the housebuilding sector, arguing that drawing it to a close next month risks “repeating the housing bust of 1988 when the market slumped after tax relief was ended”. Not only has the CPS called for an extension to the stamp duty holiday, it has suggested the levy should either see the threshold permanently increased or be abolished completely. The think-tank’s Jethro Elsden said stamp duty “may well be the worst tax on the UK’s statute books”, adding that it “damages the economy”.
The Sun (20/02/2021) Sunday Express (20/02/2021)