Buy a new home before stamp duty change in March

Time is now running out for first-time homebuyers to take advantage of the Government's stamp duty holiday.

Currently, first-time buyers pay no stamp duty on properties under £250,000. However these rates will change, potentially costing first-time buyers thousands of pounds when they buy a property.

Prospective homebuyers are being urged to buy a new home before the end of the stamp duty holiday on 24 March.

From March 25 onwards, anyone who takes ownership of a new home will have to pay 1% of the purchase price in stamp duty tax.

Various housebuilders have many incentives and schemes that can help first-time buyers onto the property ladder.

Larkfleet Homes, for instance, is offering family and friends of first-time buyers who contribute 20% of the purchase price of a new property, a 5% return for five years after the purchase. The first-time buyers can also benefit, enjoying a smaller mortgage and a lower interest rate.

The housebuilder has only a limited number of new homes left for sale at its Old Laundry development in Bourne, Lincolnshire, that includes a selection of one-, two- and three-bedroom properties.

The new homes left for sale include a one-bedroom coachhouse at £99,995 and a two-bedroom end-terraced property with a single garage.

The firm's Parsons Prospect development in Eye, near Peterborough, features two-, three- and four-bedroom properties.
One four-bedroom property type with a single garage is on the market at £194,995. The detached house includes an open-plan kitchen and breakfast area, utility and downstairs cloakroom and separate dining room and sitting room.

With increasing energy prices, Larkfleet properties are an investment for the future. The energy-efficient nature of Larkfleet homes could save homebuyers up to £600 a year in fuel bills, according to research conducted by the new homes developer.