THE UK property market is booming with the number of homes sold within a week more than doubling from last year as Britons scramble to cash in on a tax cut.
One in seven has found a buyer in fewer than seven days since Chancellor Rishi Sunak raised the threshold for paying stamp duty, a home-buying levy, to spur activity in July, said Rightmove. The market stalled when the UK imposed a lockdown due to Covid-19 in March, with viewings banned and transactions delayed.
Homes in London are the slowest to sell, and Scotland, the fastest, the property website said. The greatest demand is for three-bedroom houses. The stamp-duty holiday, which is due to run until March 31 next year, has ignited a market that was already seeing huge pent-up demand following the reopening of the housing market in May.