"The tax gums up the housing market and locks down homeowners, at a time when many more people are ready to move."
TPA says that the cost of stamp duty means that "for some people who might consider moving, the benefits no longer outweigh the costs. They either decide not to move at all or delay doing so".
TPA's modelling, based on last year's figures, shows that 216,000 more transactions would have taken place if the £500,000 threshold had been introduced in 2019, increasing transactions by 27%. Some of that would have been a one-off effect of a cut, but TPA says the higher threshold would permanently increase transaction numbers by 132,000 a year, or 17%.
Its research shows that a higher SDLT threshold of £1 million would have resulted in an estimated 245,000 more transactions last year, equivalent to a 31% increase on existing transactions worth over £125,000.
In a statement, the TaxPayers’ Alliance said: "A couple’s location preferences might change, for example, when they retire from work. Living near leisure facilities or family might become relatively more important than living somewhere convenient for where they used to work before they retired. They might also prefer a smaller property if their children have recently moved, particularly if downsizing could help their children buy a property of their own to make space for grandchildren. As well as frustrating the lives of couples like this, SDLT also frustrates the ambitions of those who might otherwise have bought that same property, precisely because it is larger or conveniently located for employment opportunities. In this way, SDLT plays a role in both exacerbating the housing crisis and weakening productivity."
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "Stamp duty is a terrible tax and this measure will help get Britain moving again, potentially unlocking hundreds of thousands of new moves.
“The tax gums up the housing market and locks down homeowners, at a time when many more people are ready to move. We estimate this tax cut could have an impressive effect on the housing market this year.
"The scale of these benefits show that the chancellor would be crazy to stop there. Raising the threshold further, or preferably just abolishing the tax completely, would build in huge benefits for homebuyers, productivity and the economy as a whole.”
