Surveyors call for major reform to stamp duty and Help to Buy
THE ROYAL Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is pushing for sweeping reforms to UK housing policy in the upcoming budget, to limit market distortions.
The group reveals its suggestions to the Treasury today, stressing the need to change stamp duty so less of a burden falls on homes worth just over £250,000, when the tax rises from one to three per cent.
“We wouldn’t have this problem if the tax thresholds had kept pace with inflation,” said RICS’ Peter Bolton King.
He added that there were major regional variations due to the cost of housing in the capital: “You’re getting a situation where a person of the same age and at the same point in their life is paying a heap of extra tax as a penalty for living and working in London.”
RICS are also calling for Help to Buy to be reassessed, adding that 60 per cent of their members wanted the scheme adjusted to take account of regional disparities.