As a result of their unexpected majority, the Tories will be able to ensure their new Help to Buy ISA policy becomes law immediately, according to property expert Simon Morris.
In his final budget before the election, Chancellor George Osborne said the new ISA wrapper would launch in the autumn of 2015 and would enable first-time buyers to save £200 a month from the taxman. The government, in a plan to help more first-time buyers onto the property ladder, promised to give people 25p for every £1 they saved in a Help to Buy ISA, up to a maximum of £3,000 for £12,000 stored in the account. The account would require a minimum of £1,000.
“We couldn’t have predicted this,” Morris said. “Every poll suggested that there’d be no clear winner on 7th May and the strong surge of the SNP in Scotland indicated that Cameron’s Conservatives might have been locked out of the halls of power all together in favour of a Labour-SNP coalition.”
The majority mandate they now have – albeit a slim one – means they have a clear path to implement their vision for the UK’s property market, Morris added.
“In the run up to the national poll the Tories outlined a number of policies designed to boost the UK’s residential sector including intentions to build 200,000 starter homes in England by 2020 and the Help to Buy ISA,” Morris went on.
“The Help to Buy ISA in particular has the potential to make the UK’s residential sector a more attractive property investment option. The fact that it’s designed to help people save will persuade more first time buyers to purchase a home and inject capital into the market.”
Morris believes the Help to Buy ISA offers a lucrative investment opportunity when property bonds and funds are used within it. In these cases, investors can make the most of various tax advantages.
“I would recommend that investors research any potential in-direct property investment option and choose a regulated product before they commit if they want to reap healthy returns,” Morris concluded. “Investors should also use the services of an Independent Financial Advisor where property investment products are concerned. An IFA will weigh up their appetite for risk against their expectations concerning yield to show them the right financial product for their circumstances.”
The Guide to Property Investment 2015, written by Simon Morris to give private and commercial investors the information they need to make sure they are making the right enquiries before they take out any financial product, can be downloaded here.