First time buyers will be left 'worse off' by Rishi Sunak's stamp duty axe, think-tank warns

First time buyers will be left “worse off” by the scrapping of stamp duty for most purchases during the pandemic, a think-tank is suggesting.

House prices will rise as some of the tax break is captured by sellers, the Institute for Fiscal Studies warned – which will punish first time buyers already largely exempt from the levy.

“This is a group that might actually be made worse off by the policy,” said Helen Miller, the IFS’s deputy director.

She argued that, when those taking the first step on the housing ladder were the only group escaping stamp duty, they “retained” the benefit.

“Now it is across the whole market, it’s more likely that prices will rise and therefore first time buyers could be left keeping less of the discount,” Ms Miller added.

The warning came as the IFS also questioned the chancellor’s £10-a-head ‘eat out to help out’ discount on restaurant meals next month

Ms Miller argued the problems facing restaurants might be caused more by an inability unable to accommodate customers – because of social distancing rules – rather than a lack of demand.

It was also “odd” to exclude takeaways, where more businesses could be helped, facing fewer such constraints.

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