David Brown, CEO of Marsh & Parsons, comments: “The property market in March experienced a real rush that represented more than simply a Spring surge. Driven by a desire to avoid the 3% Stamp Duty levy on additional homes, many investors planned ahead by hunting for new properties in January and applying for buy-to-let mortgages at the start of February, before reaping the fruit of their labour in March.
“The property market can probably expect a slight steadying in the second quarter of the year as investors take a brief step back to assess the impact of the Stamp Duty surcharge but March is by no means the last hurrah. The golden combination of low mortgage rates and a sunny economic climate will lift housing activity back to levels we saw in 2015.
“Moreover, its worth noting that a sizeable proportion of March’s activity was driven by homemovers and first-time buyers who are unaffected by the new Treasury levy. With investors taking time out of the market over the near future, it will be interesting to see if first-time buyers in particular take advantage of this window by using the Government support available to them to muscle their way onto the ladder and realise their homeowning aspirations.”
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