The CML agues that raising the threshold of stamp duty would bring home ownership back into reach for many would-be first-time buyers. And raising the threshold for inheritance tax would restore some equilibrium for existing owners of relatively modest homes.
The submission also calls for the removal of tax on premiums for mortgage payment protection insurance (MPPI).
The CML believes this would encourage more homeowners to protect themselves against the risk of being unable to pay their mortgage and show a continuing government commitment to the initiative to make home ownership more sustainable.
The lender trade body is also calling for a closer partnership between government and lenders so that initiatives are better co-ordinated to help ensure that government intervention does not produce damaging, unintended consequences.
CML deputy director general Peter Williams said: “While two-thirds of households are homeowners, they get only 6 per cent of the government's housing spending. This obvious imbalance needs redressing.
“On property-related taxes, the government appears to have no coherent policy. The threshold for stamp duty has not been raised since the government was elected in 1997. Since then, the amount paid annually by homeowners has risen four-fold.”
Rachel Blackmore, external affairs manager for the Building Societies Association, said: “Certainly, we are always looking to have a constructive relationship with the government so that it understands the practicalities of delivering certain housing policies. And we would want to be part of the discussion at a very early stage.”
