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First-time buyers rushing to beat stamp duty deadline, says NAEA
06/11/09
Edited by Andy Jowett. A recent rise in demand for residential property from first-time buyers is being fuelled by a rush to beat the end of the stamp duty holiday for homes under £175,000, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has said.
Figures published earlier this week from Winkworths showed that the percentage of enquiries from those looking to buy their first house has recovered to 32 per cent this year after dropping to 19 per cent in 2008.
The NAEA's Trevor Kent said the rise is partly being fuelled by people who are in a position to exchange and complete "rushing" to beat the freeze on stamp duty, which ends on December 31st.
He added that the apparent return of first-time buyers is "excellent news" for the market as a whole, because the initial links in a housing chain are normally people buying their first home.
Nevertheless, he noted that "demand is not necessarily the same as purchasing", so while more people may be looking at buying a home, they may not be completing transactions.
Mr. Kent advised prospective first-time buyers to speak to mortgage lenders or brokers "at an early stage" so they do not get an "unpleasant shock" about either the interest rate on a loan or the amount of deposit they will need.
