Ahead of the Budget announcement next week, there has been a lot of speculation surrounding what the Chancellor is set to announce.
According to media sources, Rishi Sunak is planning to extend the Stamp Duty holiday until the end of June. The current deadline for the holiday extension is 31st March. The Chancellor has been urged, numerous times, to extend the Stamp Duty holiday as many are set to miss the end of March deadline.
The current Stamp Duty rules saw the threshold being temporarily raised from £125,000 to £500,000 for property in England and Northern Ireland. This rule was introduced in an effort to get the housing market back on track, following the first national lockdown.
It appears the holiday has had a positive effect on the housing market with house sales increasing to their highest level since before the 2007 financial crisis. Figures show there was an initial decline in sales between April and June in 2020 however, the number of transactions increased from 132,090 in the second quarter to 316,300 by the end of the fourth quarter.
The Centre for Policy Studies is now urging the government to either increase the threshold on primary residences to £500,000 or abolish the tax altogether.
The Chancellor will outline the Budget on Wednesday 3rd March.
