Stamp duty holiday: Housebuilder and estate agent stocks jump
Housebuilders and estate agent stocks jumped this afternoon after the chancellor announced a stamp duty holiday in a bid to get the UK property market moving.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that the stamp duty threshold would increase from £125,000 to £500,000 until March next year to boost activity after the coronavirus lockdown.
He said it would result in an average saving of £4,500 for per person, and would benefit nine out of 10 buyers.
Persimmon’s share price jumped 2.78 per cent to 2,479p this afternoon and Barratt Development’s share price was up 1.34 per cent to 535.47p.
Bellway’s shares lifted 1.09 per cent to 2,606p and Countryside Properties’ share price increased 1.8 per cent to 350.6p after the chancellor announced the immediate changes to property tax.
Estate agents also benefited from a share price boost following the announcement.
London estate agent Foxtons saw its share price rise 2.76 per cent to 38.64p, while online platform Purplebricks’ share price was up 2.87 per cent to 57.61p.
“Property transactions fell by 50 per cent in May, house prices have fallen for the first time in eight years and uncertainty abounds in the market,” Sunak said this afternoon.
“A market we need to be thriving, we need people to be feeling confident, confident to buy, sell, renovate, move and improve. That will drive growth, that will create jobs.”
“The tax cut should provide a much-needed shot in the arm for the property industry, which saw a complete shutdown during lockdown and is now plagued with worries about falling house prices,” Laura Suter, personal finance analyst at AJ Bell, said.