Private Finance comments on the English Housing Survey

Chris Sykes, mortgage consultant at Private Finance comments:

“The baby boomer generation is holding onto at least 4.8 million spare bedrooms across the UK,* with 67% of households aged 65+ currently living in an under-occupied home with two or more spare bedrooms. The cost of stamp duty is discouraging these empty nesters from downsizing, leaving them in homes too large for their future needs, but too costly to give up. As a result of this inactivity at the top end of the ladder, housing stock is limited and the UK property market is somewhat paralysed.

“To free up housing stock and re-energise the property market, we’re calling on the UK government to introduce a stamp duty exemption for last-time buyers. Minimising the tax liabilities for older generations could encourage and enable them to finally downsize, freeing up housing stock and thereby helping to fix the supply issue that has hindered the market for so long.”

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