The mini-housing boom that helped the economic recovery following the UK lockdown period further accelerated the rebound in construction activity in September.
A spotlight was put on the construction industry, which accounts for approximately 7% of the UK economy, following Boris Johnsons speech encouraging the UK to “build, build, build” as part of his post-coronavirus recovery plan.
On the 13th May, the housing market in England finally got the green light to reopen after seven weeks of lockdown, a period which reportedly halted nearly half a million people from progressing with their plans to move.
The residential sector benefited from a stamp duty holiday which was introduced in July and will last until March next year.
Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced the temporary holiday in a bid to boost the housing market, where house-hunters will not have to pay any stamp duty on property’s costing up to £500,000, saving them as much as £15,000 in fees.
The sector was further bolstered by other incentives, such as the extension of the existing help to buy scheme and new regulations which will make it easier to build better homes where people want to live.
The post-lockdown “mini-housing boom” saw the UK housing market record its busiest month in more than a decade in July, according to property website Rightmove.
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