How Will the Budget Help the Housing Market?

With the housing market starting to pick up, what impact will the announcements made in the recent Budget have on the sector? From the extension of Help to Buy and more finance for small businesses to the failure to address the stamp duty issue, there were plenty of details for homeowners to digest.

Help to Buy Extended

Since it was launched last year, the equity loan element of the Help to Buy scheme has helped to boost the market. This has been particularly prominent amongst first-time buyers, who were struggling to raise large enough deposits to get on the housing ladder. The scheme was due to end in 2016, but the Chancellor announced in the Budget that this will now run for another four years. This extension until 2020 will give more buyers the chance to take their first step into the property market or move up the ladder. This movement within the sector will increase the supply of properties, especially at the bottom end of the market.

More Finance for House Builders

The larger house builders are increasingly generating higher profits and showing healthy pipelines. However, the government also wants to help those smaller builders who are struggling to access the right finance to get their sites underway. Within the Budget they announced plans to make half a billion pounds available for these smaller companies to enable them to start more projects. This will allow more consumers to buy the new property they?re looking for, whether it?s a four-bed family home or an apartment with a stainless steel balcony.

No Easing of Stamp Duty Pressures

One area where many industry experts and consumers wanted to see changes made was to the stamp duty thresholds. However, the Chancellor failed to make any alterations, which means more house buyers will see larger bills as property prices continue to rise. With the average price of a property rising above the ?250,000 mark, a greater number of homeowners will have to pay the 3% rate. This could limit the number of transactions taking place, as those in the middle of the market struggle to afford the cost of moving up the ladder.

Whether you?re looking to buy your first property or move into a bigger house, it?s important that you are fully aware of how these details will affect you. Any financial implications of your purchase could have an impact on your budget, both now and in the future.