Brian Murphy said the increased availability of 95% deals, which hit a four-year high, was likely to have a far more positive effect on the housing market.
He said: “Indeed, the data shows the concession has done little to stimulate the market since the 1% tax for first-time buyers purchasing properties worth between £125,000 and £250,000 was removed two-years ago.
“What was more of an issue was deposit affordability, so while there may be an uplift in the amount of first-time buyers in the weeks remaining before the deadline, this is more likely to be influenced by the greater number of 95% LTV mortgages currently available.
“The number of 95% LTV deals is at a four-year high and indicates an increased appetite from lenders in the last few months.”
Murphy added that while not every first-time borrower would be able to meet the criteria, the increased availability of mortgage finance was more of a factor influencing first-time buyer numbers.
Murphy said that, as such, the introduction of the government's NewBuy scheme could help to sustain the availability of finance for buyers with small deposits.
He said: “We’ve not seen details from lenders yet but the proposed mortgage indemnity scheme will guarantee 95% loans up to £500,000 on new-build homes, with developers and taxpayers providing funding.
“Reducing the size of the deposit needed to buy a property will provide a stronger stimulus for the market.
“However we still hope the government will reconsider the decision to remove the stamp duty holiday – as although the evidence suggests it has done little to stimulate activity – its removal creates unnecessary confusion as some buyers will be trying to complete before the deadline expires and may abandon their purchase if they don’t think they will be able to complete in time.”
