The Residential Landlords
Association (RLA) has warned that the stamp duty hike announced in the Autumn
statement will only worsen the current shortage of accommodation and drive up
the cost of rents.
The
Chancellor stated that ‘solving the housing crisis was a top priority’. But the
RLA said the focus again seems to be help for first-time buyers and home ownership
with the announcement that those buying second homes and investing in
buy-to-let will pay an extra 3% stamp duty than others buying a primary home to
live in.
This is
another hit for landlords who are still anxious about how changes to mortgage
interest relief (MIR) announced in the Summer Budget will affect them.
Given that the private rented sector has accounted for the large majority of
new dwellings created in England between 1996 and 2013, this extra burden
threatens to reduce the number of new homes available at a time when demand
continues to rise.
RLA
chairman Alan Ward said: “The biggest losers from the Autumn statement are
tenants who will now find it even harder to get the accommodation they want at
a price they can afford. The extra stamp duty on buy to let’s will exacerbate
an already serious shortage of properties in many areas reducing choice and
driving up rents.
“The
government should be encouraging landlords to invest, not doing everything they
can to discourage them.”
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