First Time Buyer Stamp Duty Relief ends 24th March

Any first time buyers seeking to purchase are reminded that the 2 year-long Stamp Duty relief given by the Government comes to an end in March this year.

The scheme, which was designed to help genuine first time buyers, currently provides relief for any person buying their first home which they intend to live in, up to a purchase price of £250,000. If two or more people are jointly buying the property, then they must all be first time buyers.

However the scheme ends with purchases made on 24th March, so it may be worthwhile looking for something soon, rather than hoping to rely on chasing a solicitor to complete before the deadline.

One word of warning however - as a general rule, do not over-bid on any property just to buy it before a deadline.

When mortgage interest tax relief was ended some years ago, there was a stampede to purchase before the deadline, which helped to drive prices up, and afterwards the market was quiet, resulting in negative equity for many who had just rushed to buy. It would be horrible to think of anyone bidding up a price against other interested purchasers in an effort to try to secure a purchase before the relief ends, and ending up paying more on the price than the Stamp Duty they were seeking to avoid...