Chancellor Philip Hammond has today revealed in the Autumn budget that stamp duty will be abolished immediately for first-time buyers buying a home of up to £300,000. What this means is that for properties costing up to £500,000, no stamp duty will be paid on the first £300,000, with 95% of first-time buyers seeing stamp duty cut, while 80% will pay none at all.
Although this immediately looks positive for first-time buyers, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said the main people benefitting would actually be existing homeowners, because it expects all house prices to rise by 0.3% as a result of the change!
If you're unsure how this will affect you or your property, contact your local branch of Mayfair and the team will be happy to provide free, no-obligation advice.