Gordon Brown’s speech this week revealed two main policy proposals that will impact on the residential property sector – savings for house buyers on stamp duty and Government land sales to make room for more housing.

Stamp Duty Savings Proposal
James Thomas, head of residential at Jones Lang LaSalle, comments: “The Chancellor announced the intention for all new homes to be carbon free within the next ten years and provide buyers with stamp duty exemption for purchasing such property. With the average price of a new home currently £176,000 this would reflect an average 1% (£1,760) saving on Stamp Duty. This potential benefit for house builders for increased profitability will depend on the cost of delivering carbon free housing. With investment and development in this area, the costs are undoubtedly decreasing and this announcement will spur ongoing innovation in this field.

“From the perspective on homeowners the positive news on Stamp Duty relief and the knock-on impact of cheaper household running costs delivered by new and eco friendly homes, will need to be balanced against their aspirations. Homebuyer demands are becoming increasingly challenging with requirements for non-eco friendly features such as air-conditioning on the rise. These are in conflict with the Government’s aspirations and will present a challenge for house builders.”

Land Sales
“The Chancellor announced the disposal of £7bn of Government land and property assets next year with a further £30bn over the spending review period. It is likely that much of this land will be passed to English Partnerships and will form a new source of mixed-use development land (including housing) over the coming years. This is welcomed and would ease supply pressures, in turn supporting continued strong house price growth, particularly in the South East”, says Sue Foxley, Head of UK Research at Jones Lang LaSalle.