First time buyers pay 'unfair' Stamp Duty

The unrelenting rise in UK property prices has caused 68% of first time buyers to become liable for stamp duty, with 12% expecting to pay 1% or more, according to research into first time buyers commissioned by Bradford & Bingley. Andy Wiggans, director of mortgages for Bradford & Bingley, says: “Stamp Duty was never designed to be a tax on first time buyers, yet it now affects a vast proportion of them and is seriously hampering their ability to get a foothold on the property ladder. The average first time buyer now has to find over £1,000 to pay this tax, at a time when most are struggl...