UP to £8 million generated from stamp duty on high-value property sales could be used to support assisted home-ownership schemes, if the States Assembly backs an amendment to the Government Plan.
St Helier North Deputy Max Andrews has lodged a proposal calling for revenue from stamp duty on the sale of properties for more than £2.5 million to be ring-fenced to help Islanders onto the housing ladder by 2024.
As part of the Government Plan, the Council of Ministers has already suggested that stamp duty on second homes, buy-to-let investments and holiday homes be increased by 3%. The government is also conducting a wider review of stamp duty, which is scheduled to be completed next summer.
In his proposition, Deputy Andrews said: ‘This amendment will specify that stamp duty revenue on sales of properties of over £2.5 million should be ring-fenced for use in assisted home-ownership schemes. The circa £8 million funding would allow ministers to bring forward a range of schemes, as yet to be fully detailed, to help Islanders own their own home.
‘The Council of Ministers will have a year to identify how this can be best achieved. However, I envisage that this ring-fencing would be ongoing until such a time that assisted home-ownership schemes are no longer a necessity.’
He added: ‘I have been informed that the small number of transactions of properties over £2.5 million mean there is a high degree of variance in the stamp duty receipts year on year. However, I have been further informed that recent trends would indicate the value of the ring-fenced stamp duty to be approximately £8 million per year.’
Deputy Andrews explained that, in the first instance, the money could be used to help expand the number of government-backed assisted home-ownership initiatives.
‘The current affordable-housing-purchase schemes are open to those who fit within eligibility criteria, although the only government-advertised scheme at the time of writing is the Andium Homebuy scheme,’ he said.
Deputy Andrews explained that there were a number of schemes in the UK which Jersey could follow.
He said they included a ‘first homes’ initiative in which first-time buyers are able to purchase a home at least 30% under market value. The discount is delivered through developer contributions and is retained in perpetuity, he said.
Another idea he pointed to was the UK’s ‘Help to Buy: Shared Ownership’ scheme, which enables people to buy a share of a property and pay a subsidised rent on the remaining portion.
