Reform of Stamp Duty still needed says housing industry

Bradford & Bingley (B&B) claims in spite of Gordon Brown increasing the threshold for Stamp Duty from £60,000 to £120,000 in last year’s Budget 55% of first time buyers are still getting caught thanks to continuing rises in house prices. B&B says the figure rises to 70% in London with 61% of those asked admitting they don’t know the stamp duty brackets and rates leaving them unprepared for how much they will have to pay. The lender says its research was carried out to discover whether a year on, the Chancellor’s announcement on Stamp Duty has helped buyers onto the property ladder. It say...