Mr Osborne is not proving to be the friend of the buy-to-let investor! You will have read in the national media that, whilst full details are still emerging, it's looking like from April 2016 investors will need to pay at least 3% in stamp duty when they buy an investment property.
In Northampton, most investment purchases are currently under £150,000. At that figure 3% would be £4500.00 - in fact it will be more than this due to stamp duty banding. It's a fairly significant sum of money and we feel this policy WILL affect people's investment strategies. Currently, the major buyers of properties under £150,000 in Northampton are investors - Mr Osborne is clearly trying to change that trend.
When announcements like this are made, there's always a fair bit of panic / scaremongering as to what the outcome will be (see the Daily Mail). Will it cause property prices to drop? Will it stem the flow of investors entering the market? Will it mean rents increase? We often find with announcements like this that the effects aren't as significant as was first thought - time will tell.
What certainly is happening (and I can tell this by the number of emails I've received in the last 48 hours) is that many people are looking to buy BEFORE the new stamp duty rules come in in April. That doesn't leave much time and means December and January (which are traditionally quiet) are already looking like they will be quite busy. If you want to aquire something before April, you really need to tie up a deal in January - and if you choose the wrong conveyancer you still won't make it in time.
If you are looking to buy before the new stamp duty rules come in, please send me an email to richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk - even if you think you're on my radar already. We will be working extra hard over the coming months to find properties for investors who are keen to meet this time frame, but it's important to understand which of our investors consider April to be a deadline they need to meet so we can plan accordingly.
In Northampton, most investment purchases are currently under £150,000. At that figure 3% would be £4500.00 - in fact it will be more than this due to stamp duty banding. It's a fairly significant sum of money and we feel this policy WILL affect people's investment strategies. Currently, the major buyers of properties under £150,000 in Northampton are investors - Mr Osborne is clearly trying to change that trend.
When announcements like this are made, there's always a fair bit of panic / scaremongering as to what the outcome will be (see the Daily Mail). Will it cause property prices to drop? Will it stem the flow of investors entering the market? Will it mean rents increase? We often find with announcements like this that the effects aren't as significant as was first thought - time will tell.
What certainly is happening (and I can tell this by the number of emails I've received in the last 48 hours) is that many people are looking to buy BEFORE the new stamp duty rules come in in April. That doesn't leave much time and means December and January (which are traditionally quiet) are already looking like they will be quite busy. If you want to aquire something before April, you really need to tie up a deal in January - and if you choose the wrong conveyancer you still won't make it in time.
If you are looking to buy before the new stamp duty rules come in, please send me an email to richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk - even if you think you're on my radar already. We will be working extra hard over the coming months to find properties for investors who are keen to meet this time frame, but it's important to understand which of our investors consider April to be a deadline they need to meet so we can plan accordingly.
