Phil Cliff

First-time buyers have saved hundreds of millions of pounds thanks to the stamp duty holiday which is set to come to an end next month, research shows.

According to Santander, the two-year exemption from stamp duty, which is scheduled to come to an end on 24 March, has collectively saved first-time buyers a staggering £319m in fees, proving that the initiative has helped to boost demand for residential properties nationwide.

Over two million young homeowners are stuck in their first property with little hope of moving to a larger property, a new report by mortgage lender Santander shows.

According to the research, half of people aged between 18 and 34 who want to buy a new home over the next two years think that it is unrealistic that they will be able to do so.

18 March 2010

Mortgage borrowing rates could continue their recent fall over the next few weeks, after the Bank of England (BoE) voted unanimously earlier this month to keep interest rates unchanged at 0.5% and maintain quantitative easing at £200bn.

The minutes from the last meeting between the nine-strong monetary policy committee (MPC) revealed that they voted 9-0 to keep rates on hold, despite a split over how to tackle inflation and the fragile economic recovery.