Chancellor being urged to cut stamp duty

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by Kay Murchie

Chancellor Alistair Darling is being urged to cut stamp duty in the forthcoming Budget next month.

The request has been made by the National Association of Estate Agents and it is hoped that revising the threshold at which stamp duty is paid will make it easier for first-time buyers.

NAEA president, Stewart Lilly said the Government needs to be aware with inflation increasing, consumers need a helping hand. We would like to see a scale of stamp duty that reflects the house price inflation in recent years.

The NAEA is recommending that no stamp duty is paid on properties up to £200,000. Homes worth up to £300,000 would be taxed at 1%, while those worth up to £450,000 would be taxed at 2% and so on until a final tax of 4.5% which would be levied against properties in excess of £2 million.

Last week, figures from the CML revealed that 40% of the mortgages issued to first-time buyers last year were for properties valued below £125,000(the minimum stamp duty threshold), compared to 50% in 2006.

The Chancellor will present his first Budget to the House of Commons on 12 March, with speculation growing that some kind of change to the stamp duty system will be announced.