On 30th October 2024 the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves delivered the Autumn budget which we had previously been warned would be “difficult”. Below we have summarised the main housing points.
House Building
The chancellor advised that the government will invest more than £5bn to deliver their housing plan. She confirmed that they will increase their Affordable Homes Programme to £3.1bn, provide £3bn worth of support and promises to increase the number of homes and support small housebuilders. The right to buy discount will also be reduced and local authorities will be able to retain more money from sales.
Stamp Duty
The chancellor has confirmed that first time buyers will continue being exempt from paying stamp duty on properties up to £425,000, this is set to be reduced to £300,000 from the 1st April 2025.
Targeting landlords and those with second properties, the chancellor revealed that second-home buyers will have to pay an additional 2% stamp duty from the 31st of October 2024.
Cladding
The government will give £1bn to fast-track the removal of dangerous cladding on homes following the Grenfell Tower incident.
According to Nationwide Building Society’s latest House Price Index, house prices dropped 0.6% month on month in May – the first monthly decline this year.
5 days ago
Here are the lowest fixed mortgage rates of the week, available to first-time buyers, home movers, buy-to-let, and those remortgaging.
Call us for more information: 01628 507477 or email: team@mortgagerequired.com.
14 days ago
Research from Lloyds identifies the most affordable areas in the UK for first-time buyers to be able to get onto the property ladder.
On Wednesday, 13th May, King Charles delivered his speech at the House of Lords, outlining the government’s plans for the upcoming year.
Here is a summary of the housing and energy/environment points.
From 18th May 2026, Halifax (part of Lloyds Banking Group) is launching a ‘£5k Deposit mortgage’ to help first-time buyers get onto the property ladder sooner.
Homeowners could be faced with paying over £3,000 more per year on their mortgage if the conflict in the Middle East continues, following new analysis from INTEREST from Moneyfacts.
28 Apr 2026
The Renter’s Rights Bill became law at the end of October, which means it has been signed off by the King, and it is now the Renters’ Rights Act. Despite this becoming law, these changes are likely to start changing within the next six months, with the aim of being fully implemented throughout 2026 and into 2027.
28 Apr 2026
Mortgage lenders are starting to recognise their “Green” responsibilities when it comes to the different products they offer.