UK house prices jump by most since 2004 as tax break extended

House prices are 7.1% above their level a year earlier and close to December's growth rate of 7.3%, which was the highest in nearly six years after COVID lockdowns boosted demand for more spacious housing. "Just as expectations of the end of the stamp duty holiday led to a slowdown in house price growth in March, so the extension of the stamp duty holiday in the Budget prompted a reacceleration in April," Nationwide chief economist Robert Gardner said.


Reuters | Updated: 30-04-2021 11:54 IST | Created: 30-04-2021 11:54 IST
UK house prices jump by most since 2004 as tax break extended

British house prices jumped by 2.1% in April, their biggest monthly rise in more than 17 years, after finance minister Rishi Sunak unexpectedly extended a tax break on property sales, figures from mortgage lender Nationwide showed on Friday. House prices are 7.1% above their level a year earlier and close to December's growth rate of 7.3%, which was the highest in nearly six years after COVID lockdowns boosted demand for more spacious housing.

"Just as expectations of the end of the stamp duty holiday led to a slowdown in house price growth in March, so the extension of the stamp duty holiday in the Budget prompted a reacceleration in April," Nationwide chief economist Robert Gardner said. Stamp duty, the main tax on property purchases, will not be payable on house purchases up to 500,000 pounds ($696,650) made before the end of June, and the first 250,000 pounds of property purchases will be tax-free until the end of September.

The tax break had been due to expire at the end of March. As well as a rise in property prices, the tax exemption contributed to a sharp increase in the number of property sales last year.

Nationwide said there was scope for house prices to rise further in the coming months due to a fairly fixed supply of housing and a continued desire to move as a result of the COVID pandemic, which reduced demand for small city-centre homes. But Gardner said activity could slow later this year, perhaps sharply, if unemployment picked up as most economists predict. ($1 = 0.7177 pounds)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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