Fantasy economics': Readers warn of housing chaos if stamp duty is scrapped
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Fantasy economics': Readers warn of housing chaos if stamp duty is scrapped
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"But Independent readers are divided on whether the tax should be axed, with some arguing abolition is fantasy economics that would only drive up prices. When stamp duty was cut during Covid, the spike was so huge it made it even harder for first-time buyers, one said, while another warned that any savings would just be added to deposits and fuel a crash. Several noted it would appeal to the very well off but do absolutely nothing for renters or those already priced out of the housing market."
Coverage spans reproductive rights, climate change, and Big Tech, including investigations into Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC and a documentary, 'The A Word', about American women fighting for reproductive rights. Funding relies on reader donations to sustain on-the-ground reporting and to keep content free of paywalls, with the view that quality journalism should be available to everyone and paid for by those who can afford it. Stamp duty reform is rumoured ahead of the Autumn Budget, with proposals including a new tax on home sales over 500,000. Opinions are split: critics warn abolition would inflate prices, harm first-time buyers, and benefit the very wealthy; proposed alternatives include exemptions, higher thresholds, downsizing rebates, or a mansion tax.
Read at www.independent.co.uk
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