NEWS

Budget extends stamp duty holiday

The Stamp Duty holiday for homes bought for under £175,000 announced in September last year is to be extended for three months and will now expire at the end of the year, Alistair Darling is to reveal during today's Budget statement.

Darling's expected statement at lunchtime today is aimed mostly at first-time-buyers who will continue to save £1,750 in moving costs. Stamp Duty used to levied at the zero rate only on houses bought below £125,000.

The announcement is part of a raft of measures designed to support the country's ailing housing market and include:
* Money put aside to help restart work on mothballed housing developments.
* Financial help for houses that have been built but cannot be sold - through joint-equity schemes and also by buying up failed but finished housing developments and converting them into council housing.
* Cash for councils to enable councils to start building housing again.
* Extra funding for the mortgage relief scheme announced this week.

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