Telegraph Money

The week's most important personal finance news, analysis and expert advice, from pensions and property to investment ideas and savings tips.

Hundreds of thousands will be scrambling come April

Britain’s housing market will drop off a cliff edge when the stamp duty holiday comes to an end in March, leaving home movers poorer and causing sales to collapse, property professionals have said.
Approximately 350,000 buyers are expected to miss out on the tax saving – in many cases due to circumstances beyond their control, such as lockdown delays and difficulties getting mortgage approvals.
Aside from losing a tax break worth up to 15,000, they will also lose money already spent on surveys and mortgage approvals as deals fall through. A property market collapse would damage the country’s fragile economy, causing businesses that rely on house sales to lose money and putting thousands of jobs at risk.
This is why The Telegraph has launched a campaign, Stamp out the Duty, which calls on the Government not just to extend the tax break so that people do not miss out unfairly but to make the holiday permanent. If you believe you are going to miss out on the March 31 deadline from no fault of your own, you can help our campaign by emailing marianna.hunt@telegraph.co.uk with your story.
As our property correspondent Melissa Lawford reported, many buyers have been unable to make the most of the stamp duty holiday because of issues such as expensive leaseholds and dangerous Grenfell-style cladding that have made it difficult to sell their current home.
Cladding victims will be particularly frustrated, as a solution that could free them from their troubles could be announced next month. This will be too late for them to benefit from the stamp duty break.
Some have been unable to transact because of restrictions on mortgages. For example, self-employed people are being asked by bank Santander for a minimum deposit of 40pc – even if they have been unaffected by the pandemic.
Buyers who miss out on the tax saving are likely to negotiate with their sellers and try to shave thousands off their offer price. This will derail the soaring house price growth homeowners enjoyed last year.
Invest 100k for fun – win 10k for real
You have just over a week left to join the race for a prize of 10,000 in our Fantasy Fund Manager game. Players build their own portfolio of stocks and investment trusts from the FTSE 350, aiming to make the highest returns before the game ends on Feb 19 2021. It's free to play for subscribers and you must be in the competition by Jan 22 to be eligible for the top prize.
Join us at 7pm on Tues 19 Jan to hear from two professional fund managers as they share their views on the investments that will thrive in 2021 and could propel your portfolio to the winning spot. The event is free for subscribers and you can book your ticket here.
To play, click here. You can find out how last season's winners plan to play for the top prize this time around here. And join our Telegraph Investing group on Facebook here to find out how others are competing.
Make the most of all our content by signing up for a subscription here – your first month is free. And don't forget to visit Telegraph Money for news, advice and inspiration.

Top stories

Money Makeover

Your money

Best of the rest

Here's what our readers said

In our comments section, Sean Riley said of Bitcoin suffers 25pc slide as regulator weighs in: "I have a moderate investment in gold and silver bullion. Recently the prices have plummeted. So you might say that any investment can go pear-shaped. The difference is that if Bitcoin collapses you do not even have the paper money to console yourself with. If my investments drop in value I can still grab a wheelbarrow and collect my gold and silver."
Join the conversation here