This is how many days you have left to buy a house before missing stamp duty deadline

The stamp duty holiday has allowed those buying houses in England and Northern Ireland to make considerable savings over the past few months.

However, this is set to come to an end in March next year, which means those looking to make savings don’t have long left to get to take advantage of the scheme.

How long buyers have left to take advantage of stamp duty holiday

According to new insight from MoneySuperMarket, the average property purchase takes 123 days. This means that from Monday 9 November, just 20 days remain for homebuyers to find a property and submit a mortgage application in order to complete in time to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday.

The new research reveals that nearly two thirds (63 per cent) of prospective UK house buyers are in the market as a result of the scheme, and will be looking to complete their purchase before it ends on 31 March 2021.

The policy announcement also had an impact on the selling decisions of homeowners, with over half (57 per cent) encouraged to place their home on the market this year, despite having not previously considered selling their property before the stamp duty holiday announcement was made in July.

Emma Harvey, director of mortgages at MoneySuperMarket, commented: “As it stands, the stamp duty holiday scheme is due to come to an end on 31 March meaning prospective homebuyers have just 20 days left from Monday 9th November to find a property and apply for a mortgage in order to complete within the average 123 days it typically takes to purchase a home.”

Ms Harvey adds, “As our research shows, the stamp duty holiday has proven successful in attracting both buyers and sellers to the property market at this difficult time for the economy.

Calls for the scheme to be extended

The scheme has proved popular since it was first announced in July, but 71 per cent of people would now like the government to extend the scheme beyond March 2021, in order for them to be able to take advantage of it.

If it is not extended, then 60 per cent say they would intentionally change their buying plans, with a quarter of buyers (24 per cent) saying they would withdraw from the market completely.

“It’s clear that many would like to see the scheme extended and we believe the government needs to put in place longer term support for the housing market,” explains Ms Harvey.

How much are buyers expected to save?

Buyers are expecting to spend an average of £347,000 on a new home, and therefore make an average stamp duty saving of £5,377.

However, this varies by area, as those in London are expected to spend the most on their new property - with an average of £467,213 - but buyers in Northern Ireland expect to pay an average of £180,400.

The age group most likely to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday is the 24-35 year old category, with 71 per cent revealing they have bought a property or are looking to do so since the scheme was unveiled.

This age group is expected to spend an average of £369,700 on a new property.