An exodus of landlords ahead of the Budget has driven a surge in home sales, according to new data.
New figures from online estate agents Zoopla showed there are currently 306,000 homes in the process of being sold, representing transactions worth a total of £113bn.
This is the highest total since Autumn 2020 when a stamp duty “holiday” triggered a wave of purchases during Covid.
The total value of the sales pipeline is up 30pc year-on-year, while the number of homes with a sale agreed is up by 62,2650 compared to last year.
It comes as an increasing number of buy-to-let landlords abandon the property market after being driven out by red tape and higher taxes.
This has allowed a flood of first-time buyers to swoop in and purchase former rental properties, encouraged by a recent drop in mortgage rates.
Industry experts said that first-time buyers are also racing to complete deals amid fears that Rachel Reeves will make changes to stamp duty relief in this week’s Budget.
Currently, first-time buyers do not pay any stamp duty on properties worth up to £425,000 and partial stamp duty on homes costing £625,000.
This means that as much as 80pc of new homeowners do not pay any stamp duty.
However, there are fears the Chancellor could remove support for first-time buyers as she attempts to plug what she claims is a £22bn black hole in the public finances.
Should Ms Reeves revert the stamp duty threshold to its previous level of £300,000, industry experts predict that an additional 20pc of homeowners will end up paying stamp duty.
Chris McLaughlin, director at Bristol-based Ocean Estate Agents said: “Buy-to-let activity has notably declined as smaller or accidental landlords exit the market, influenced by less favourable financial conditions and increasing regulation.
“Consequently, much of the new housing stock now comprises former rental properties. Additionally, transaction completions have risen in the last couple of months, particularly within the investment property sector, as sellers seek to conclude deals ahead of potential changes anticipated in the upcoming Budget.”
According to its latest monthly House Price Index, Zoopla said that first-time buyers are now expected to make up 36pc of all home sales in 2024, compared to 31pc for existing homeowners.
Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: “First-time buyer numbers have recovered as mortgage rates have fallen but a sizeable deposit is still required to buy. Possible changes to stamp duty relief will only create further barriers to ownership for this group who already face significant affordability constraints.”
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