The stamp duty holiday is seeing homeowners in England and Wales save £11,566 on average, Halifax has stated.
The average house price for homemovers in the six months to June 2020 was £373,537, but this increased by £57,790 during the stamp duty holiday period to £431,327 in the six months to Dec 2020. While the threshold for stamp duty was increased to £500,000, based on the average house price for homemovers, this meant in England, only those in London and the South East still had to pay on average £9,848 and £925 respectively. In Wales, where the devolved nation’s rules differ, the average stamp duty paid was £379.
While homemovers saved money on stamp duty, they have had to deal with the ramifications of the increase in house prices during that time.
Those who moved home in London have lower upfront costs of around £12,188, as the amount of deposit increased by an average £2,812 and fully offset by stamp duty holiday savings of £15,000. But this is the only region where the stamp duty savings offset the rise in average house price deposits.
Those moving home in the South East are £7,437 better off, with the growth in average deposit (£7,564) covered by stamp duty savings of £15,001. In West Midlands, the deposit rise of £5,686 has been fully offset by stamp duty savings of £6,225, with £539 to spare.
In the South West, where the average deposit has risen by £9,311, homemovers are £378 up after stamp duty savings of £9,689. Homemovers in all other regions have seen the savings in stamp duty partially offset the increase in average deposit cost.
Andy Bickers, mortgages director at Halifax, said: “Since the summer we have seen a huge surge in mortgage applications, as people raced to make much sought after stamp duty savings.
“We know that lockdown restrictions have made it more practically challenging for those buying and selling, but the stamp duty ‘holiday’ has been one of the main drivers of continued demand for sales and purchases during the pandemic and we will wait to see if further steps are taken that could give people more time.”