Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, has revealed his new Budget following a year of extraordinary public spending in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Among a series of striking announcements on issues such as an extension to the furlough scheme, a two-year delay to the inevitable corporation tax rise, and hefty support for UK businesses to help rebuild after the pandemic, there was confirmation of one important tidbit about 95% government-backed mortgages.
The government had already leaked the news that it was to create a government-backed 95% mortgage scheme before today’s parliament speech, but Sunak confirmed the additional detail that such mortgages will be available as soon as “next month”, April.
Sunak said that a number of major high street banks and lenders have already signed up to the scheme and will start offering the mortgage rates to buyers “who can only afford a 5% deposit”. These include Lloyds, Natwest, Santander, Barclays, and HSBC, More lenders, including Virgin Money, are scheduled to sign up soon.
Sunak said the government intended to “stand behind buyers”, before adding: “As the PM has said, we want to turn Generation Rent into Generation Buy”.
Stamp Duty Holiday Extended To June
As expected, Rishi also confirmed that the stamp duty holiday will be extended to the end of June, with no tax to be paid on homes up to a value of £250,000. This top value will then be incrementally decreased through Autumn/Winter until falling back to the usual base of £125,000.
[…] only did Rishi Sunak reveal that the stamp duty holiday will be extended to the end of June, providing thousands of buyers more opportunity to buy without paying tax, but also that […]
[…] A lack of stock continues to plague the housing market – with too much demand and not enough available homes, prices are inflated, something which seems set to intensify due to the government’s 95% mortgage initiative. […]