Stamp duty is ''a con''

The government is tricking home owners out of money and using stamp duty to warrant it, according to one property expert.

Inside Track Group, which monitors property investments, said that the rise in house prices means that first-time buyers in London are now pushed into the three per cent stamp duty bracket.

This equates to £7,500 in tax paid up front on a deposit of £25,000.

Pierre Williams, head of communications at the firm, said: "Property prices continuing to rise while stamp duty thresholds remain the same, simply means Gordon Brown is making money out of people''s need to get a roof over their head."

He added that the amount of revenue gained from the tax has rocketed from £675 million in 1997 to over £5 billion in 2006.

The average home buyer in the UK pays £3,700 in stamp duty which is driving first-time buyers out of London and into less desirable areas and the suburbs, according to the study.


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