Budget 2021 and What It Means for the UK Housing Market

"Budget" by Got Credit is licensed under CC BY 2.0

The Chancellor Rishi Sunak gave his budget for 2021 at the beginning of March and it had some interesting stuff inside it - especially when talking about the housing market. It was a much anticipated budget after the chaos of the Covid-19 pandemic that’s played out over the last 12 months or so.

 It’s been a trying time for many reasons, but the housing market has been remarkably robust during this period, thanks mainly to the fact the stamp duty holiday was in place. However, that was due to come to a close at the end of March and the big question was “will he or won’t he extend it?”

The Answer Was An Emphatic Yes!

The good news for anyone looking to buy a home in the next few months is that the stamp duty holiday was extended and it’s now in place until the end of June. Big news indeed that will save buyers tens of thousands of pounds and it’s likely to provide a stimulus to the housing market in general.

 It’s good news for sellers too, as they’re expected to get a surge in interested buyers who are looking to get their homes sold before the latest stamp duty deadline. It’s the kind of news that many hoped for, but it was by no means certain to transpire.

 What’s more, the ‘nil-rate’ is being lowered to £250,000 until the beginning of October, further incentivising people to get involved in the housing market during this period. It would seem that the government understands the importance of a buoyant market.

5% Mortgages Are Now On Offer Again Too

Another reason for home buyers to be happy about Mr. Sunak’s budget is that he has instigated a mortgage scheme whereby the government foots 5% of the cost of a new home. First time buyers and renters have found it tough to get on the ladder in recent years, with a £25k needed to purchase the average home with a 10% deposit.

 The first time buyer scheme includes homes up to the value of £600k and it means an end to a period when deposits of 10-15% were the only option for many people. The expected surge in house purchases leading from this move is certain to add more fuel to the market and so it would seem that there may be exciting times ahead.

"Budget Day" by UK Prime Minister is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

A Positive Outlook from a Positive Budget

So, the other shoe has finally dropped and as we’ve seen, it’s good news for the housing market and there seems sure to be an intense period of transaction activity between now and the end of June. If you’ve been looking to get onto the ladder, the next few months represent possibly your best opportunity to get your foot on the first rung thanks to this budget.

At FS properties, we own buildings across London, so we’re very much watching events unfold with everyone else. We create articles like this to help our readers make better decisions in the market and this one in particular should prove particularly helpful.

If you’d like to know more about us as developers or you’d like to see more blogs like this one, visit us today at https://www.fsproperties.co.uk/newsroom

Alternatively, if you would like to talk to us about anything relating to property development or investment, call us today on 020 8771 3787.

Thanks for reading. We’ll see you again next time.