FIGURES have shown that first-time buyers from London and the South-East alone have saved a staggering £80 million after stamp duty tax was reformed.
Last year Chancellor Philip Hammond announced that stamp duty for first time home owner would be scrapped on properties coasting £300,000 or less in a bid to help young buyers on to the hosing ladder. The changes means that homes no stamp duty is paid for property less than £300,000 and any home worth £500,000 would not have to pay stamp duty on the first £300,000.
RMRC has released figures that show that since November 2017 around 69,000 first time buyers have benefited for the changes. On average London buyers have saved £4,300, South- East buyer have saved £3,100 and national the figure for average saving is £2,300.
Borough across South London have shown to have made the greatest saving of them all,top of the list was a saving of £2.1millionby first time buyers from Croydon, followed by Hillingdon buyers saving £2million, Lewisham buyers saving £1.9 million and £1.8million was saved by buyers from Bromley, Havering, Newham and Sutton.
The most stamp duty was also paid by other London Boroughs; £594 million stamp duty was paid by Westminster, followed by Kensington and Chelsea paying £447 million. Buy-to –let properties along with second homes have seen an increase of tax an increase of 21% to £4.06 billion.