One in eight sellers will pull out if they miss stamp duty holiday

Some 12 per cent of buyers will pull out of their transaction if it does not complete in time for their stamp duty exemption.

That’s the finding of a survey by Knight Frank, which asked 500 current purchasers their intentions.

To the question: Would you pull out of a purchase that wasn’t going to complete before March 31? some 12 per cent said Yes; 36 per cent No; and 52 per cent said they'd renegotiate the price.

The agent’s survey suggests there is overwhelming support for an extension to the stamp duty holiday.

Some 87 per cent of respondents say Chancellor Rishi Sunak should extend in the Budget next month, while a quarter of those who advocate an extension say it should be tapered.

Elsewhere in the study, 36 per cent of respondents say they are more likely to move in the next year as consequence of the latest lockdown, with 19 per cent less likely.

Just over a third of people think their house value will rise between one and five per cent in the next year.

A full 42 per cent say they will use virtual viewings more often even after the requirement to do so ends.

In terms of the much-hyped desire for more space, the survey appears to show that the latest lockdown has reinforced trends that emerged after the market reopened last May, with a desire for space, greenery and the ability to work from home remaining at the forefront of people’s minds.

The most important attributes people now want in a property are a home office or study (67 per cent), a garden, outdoor space or access to land (72 per cent) access to high-speed broadband (also 72 per cent) and a broad desire for more space, which was important for 53 per cent.

The escape to the country trend doesn’t appear to have run its course either, with 38 per cent of respondents stating that the latest lockdown had made them more likely to move to a rural location.