Craig Vile, director at ValPal, reacts to Autumn Statement:
November 25, 2016
_We needed some bold announcements on property from the Chancellor today but all we have seen are temporary sticking plasters to appease the market.
In reality the ban on letting agent fees will not benefit tenants, the costs have just been passed over to the Landlords, which will in the end be passed on to tenants through increased rents, or restrict the buy to let market.
It_s disappointing and short sighted that the chancellor hasn_t made any changes to stamp duty. Disproportionate stamp duty taxes at the upper end of the market over the last two years have done more damage than anything else in restricting transactions, including Brexit.
Releasing funds for the build of new homes is a positive move but this needs to be more, to meet demand _ again a conciliatory move.
Surely it_s no revelation that a buoyant property market is good for the economy.ÿÿWe need to see policies in place to enable and increase a free flow of transactions from the top end of the market to the bottom.ÿÿ
We would call for reduced stamp duty across the board particularly on second homes and more help for residential developers.
Currently at ValPal, our valuation data shows the market as fairly stable, but it needs a boost if we are not going to see a drop off in transactions over the next year, as the impact of Brexit kicks in._
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