The Chancellor has granted a stamp duty land tax holiday to homebuyers in England and Northern Ireland with immediate effect. It means that buyers of homes valued at up to £500,000 will no longer pay any stamp duty on the purchase.

In a bid to boost a housing market still in shock from the COVID-19 property freeze, Chancellor Rishi Sunak has today announced a measure that could save the average homebuyer over £2,000.

Stamp duty land tax (SDLT), often known simply as stamp duty, will be cancelled on all property purchases up to half a million pounds. Sunak hopes that this will provide the much-needed kick start that the property market in England needs, following predictions thathouse prices would tumble and cause market stagnation this year.