Firstly Osborne committed to doubling the housing budget to over £2bn per year to deliver 400,000 affordable homes by the end of the decade, with half of them being ‘starter homes’ sold at 20% under the market value.
Secondly a piloted version of the government’s Right to Buy scheme was launched across five housing associations from midnight.
Thirdly Osborne said he will address a lack of housing supply by releasing public land suitable for 160,000 homes and extending loans for small builders.
Fourthly he launched a London version of the Help to Buy Equity Loan scheme with a 40% equity loan which will be available from early next year.
And finally Osborne said stamp duty will be raised by 3% for buy-to-let landlords and people buying second homes from April 2016.
The Treasury is set to spend £4bn on 135,000 shared ownership homes and provide developers with £2.3bn of funding for ‘starter homes’.
Osborne said: “So this Spending Review delivers a doubling of the housing budget, 400,000 new homes with extra support for London, estates regenerated, Right to Buy rolled-out paid for by a tax on buy-to-lets and second homes delivered by a government committed to helping working people who want to buy their own home for we are the builders.”
Alison Platt, chief executive of Countrywide, praised measures for first-time buyers with shared ownership, starter homes and housebuilding measures.
She said: “The announcement of the Chancellor’s housebuilding ambitions are a welcome step forward in the process of redressing the chronic housing shortage we face today. Expanding the starter homes programme to include shared ownership will see more options for struggling first time buyers.
"The proposed changes to the planning process will lower the height of the hurdle that planning presents for developers, we think this will help get more homes built, which is what we need.”
And John Phillips, national operations director at Just Mortgages, said: “This housing boost is undoubtedly a positive step in the right direction as building more genuinely affordable homes to buy is still absolutely imperative to our economy.
“It will be particularly interesting to hear more about how the government is going to assist builders and developers in order to meet these ambitious targets.”
If reaction is anything to go by however the stamp duty change will shock landlords who will already have to cope with the mortgage tax relief crackdown from April 2017 to 2020.
Mark Posniak, managing director of Dragonfly Property Finance, said: ““The stamp duty announcement is a major body blow to anyone who considers bricks and mortar to be a much safer bet for their retirement income than stockmarkets.
“As it becomes harder and harder for young people and families to get onto the property ladder, we now have a loud and clear message from the government: there needs to be more balance.
“It is important that the government strikes the right balance between helping people to get onto the property ladder and not removing what many landlords consider to be their retirement nest eggs.
"While overseas landlords are arguably the real target here, UK landlords will feel the exact same pain."
Daniel Gandesha, chief executive and founder of Property Partner, added: “Raising the stamp duty for buy-to-let landlords is not the answer – it’s a blunt tool and fails to take into account the millions of Britons who need affordable homes to rent.”
“The Chancellor should work with industry to deliver innovation to the sector, to back small builders and to support a responsible and sustainable buy-to-let market.”
