Stamp duty clarification ''vital to restart UK housing market''

By MoneyhighStreet Staff. Published on August 11, 2008 This post currently has no comments.

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Industry experts have said that the government needs to act urgently to reignite the UK''s mortgage market and bring buyers back into the sector.

The Association of Home Information Pack Providers (AHIPP) said that it was backing recent calls from the National Association of Estate Agents for the government to provide some clarity and certainty about possible reforms to stamp duty.

Mike Ockenden, the director general of the AHIPP, said that rumours that the government was planning on putting stamp duty on hold meant that some first-time buyers were delaying applying for a mortgage in the hope the tax will be scrapped.

What''s more, the AHIPP said that the government should also look at ways it could encourage lenders to start issuing bonds into the "public markets through an existing monetary policy instrument".

Mr Ockenden explained: "The suspension of stamp duty, incentives to mortgage lenders and support for developers will give the government a real chance of kick starting this dreadful market.

"The number of new properties standing empty is astonishing. By taking in these lower priced completed properties government could provide real support to key workers, particularly in inner city areas"

The latest figures from Halifax indicated that house prices dropped 1.7 per cent in July.