A high number of people securing their first mortgage in recent years benefitted significantly from the stamp duty holiday, new research has shown.
According to estimates from Halifax, an extra four-in-ten first-time buyers (FTBs) have been exempt from the requirement as a consequence of the starting threshold being raised by the government from £125,000 to £250,000 across the last two years.
Because of the temporary hike, 95 per cent of first-time mortgage holders were not burdened with stamp duty, meaning around 150,000 individuals found the change to their advantage.
Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax – which is a division of Bank of Scotland – said: “The doubling in the starting threshold has been a significant benefit to those who have benefitted during a time of economic and financial difficulty for many.”
The industry figure explained an FTB buying a property for £200,000 would experience a jump in purchasing costs in the region of £2,000.
From a geographical perspective, it was found that the south-east and Greater London were the biggest beneficiaries of the break, with around 70 per cent of FTBs in these regions not being required to pay the duty.
