There are currently at least eight people searching for each new home that is under the lower stamp duty threshold, says SmartNewHomes.com.

According to the company, 5,000 properties on its website fall under the £125,000 stamp duty bracket, yet over 40,000 people have been searching for a home that falls below this threshold, indicating a need for more affordable homes.

David Bexon, managing director of SmartNewHomes.com, said: “These recent findings highlight the severe lack of affordable new homes currently on the market, with first time buyers increasingly getting priced out. The average price for a new home is currently £260,073, with average prices in London and the south east exceeding £300,000.

“A first time buyer, purchasing an averagely priced home in the south east would currently have to pay out £9,000 in stamp duty, in addition to paying legal fees and saving up a deposit – pushing the reality of owning a home for many, out of reach.”

Ten years ago when Blair came into power, the lower stamp duty threshold was £60,000. In the same year, the average price paid by a first time buyer for their first home was recorded as £54,133 by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), with the majority of these buyers able to escape the stamp duty trap.
However, by 2006, while the lower stamp duty threshold had been moved up to £125,000, the average price paid for a property by a first time buyer had nearly trebled to £151,803, according to DCLG statistics, resulting in more first time buyers having to pay stamp duty and making the reality of buying a home increasingly difficult for those buyers looking to step onto the property ladder.