In an effort to help the dwindling UK housing market, the government have said they may possibly suspend Stamp Duty. Obviously they did not think this through as by the pure mentioning of this, the housing market has fallen off the scale.
The very few house buyers that were out there have now stopped their purchases in the view that thousands of pounds could be saved by waiting for Stamp Duty to be suspended. One thinks that they should have kept their mouths shut until a decision was made but it is now too late.
The government now need to make a swift decision as it is difficult to see anybody wanting to buy a house when they could wait a few weeks/months and potentially save a fortune or in fact simply get more house for their money.
An example of how much this could save the average house buyer is simple. If you are buying a house for between £125,001 and £250,000, you would normally pay 1% Stamp Duty (i.e. £2,000 on a £200,000 house). This money now remains in your back pocket. Very handy for them all important home improvements once you move in.
Until a decision is made by the government then all I can see is the housing market ceasing up so a decision must be made now. Not next year, not next month or even next week, NOW!