Stamp duty uncertainty is a gift to landlords
Ever since the rumours of a suspension of stamp duty surfaced in the media the housing market has reacted badly with agreed house sales now starting to fall through with the uncertainty.
With the Chancellor Alistair Darling refusing to comment on the speculation either way until his pre-budget statement in November it is now becoming apparent that the situation is snowballing into a disaster.
The National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has urged the Chancellor to give a response one way or the other.
This is after a survey of its members found that one in four estate agents have had agreed sales fall through due to the uncertainty of the situation with buyers reluctant to go ahead with purchases if stamp duty is suspended in the near future.
The resultant confusion in the residential sales market is giving another unexpected boost to the residential lettings industry.
With potential buyers now even more unwilling to make a purchase the demand for rented accommodation will see an increase as more potential buyers wait until a decision on stamp duty has been made.
August 11th 2008
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