All the ingredients from the Lawson boom are in place in the housing market again – minus rocketing interest rates, of course
Like Easter, the start to the buying season for househunters has come early this year. Mortgage approvals in February were 20% up on the same month in 2015.
It’s not hard to see why. Higher stamp duty on buy-to-let properties and second homes comes into force at the start of April, creating an incentive for potential purchasers to evade the clutches of the taxman. The surge in activity is giving an added upward twist to house prices, which are rising by around 10% a year – five times faster than average earnings.