Lending bosses call for stamp duty relief

A GROUP of building society bosses will visit Downing Street today in a bid to persuade Chancellor Gordon Brown to raise the threshold for stamp duty.

The chief executives, led by West Bromwich Building Society's Andrew Messenger, will deliver a 23,000 strong petition to Brown.

They want the stamp duty threshold raised from its current £60,000 level to £150,000. The group claims that too many homebuyers are being caught by the tax, which is deterring first-time buyers from entering the market.

In 1993 when the £60,000 threshold was set, the Government's take from stamp duty was £465m. Since Labour came to power in 1997 this has risen to £6.2bn a year. Messenger said: 'Surely it makes sense to raise the threshold to £150,000 so that all first-time buyers are treated equally.'

His call was echoed by the Council of Mortgage Lenders, which has called for a cut for the past five years. CML director-general Michael Coogan said: 'The Government says it wants to help first-time buyers, and the most obvious way to do this is to reduce the burden of stamp duty on them.

'Research from various sources shows how dramatically stamp duty has increased in terms of the proportion of transactions it affects. The Government really has no excuse for allowing the ease of the stamp duty tax take to override the need to improve affordability at the lower end of the market.'

The CML claims the Chancellor could increase the threshold to £160,000 without affecting the revenue levels.

Have your say

OUT OF 600 people who voted in a This is Money poll on whether the Government should do more to help first-time buyers, 57% said yes while 43% said no. The poll result appears to highlight concerns among some first-time buyers that cuts in stamp duty might fuel further house price rises.

Vote now or look for first-time buyer tips and house price views on our