Treasury deletes tweet after Martin Lewis slams projected stamp duty savings as 'nonsense'

In a tweet sent on 29 September the Treasury said "a typical first-time buyer in London moving into a representative terraced house", who was also earning £30,000 a year, could save £11,250 on stamp duty, £1,050 on energy bills, and around £400 in tax as a result of its mini-budget. 

But the tweet was quickly removed after Martin called the Treasury out on its claims. See Martin's tweet below:

Why there's a problem with the savings in the tweet 

The issue is that while someone earning £30,000 a year can save £400 in tax and £1,050 on energy bills - as a result of cuts to income tax and national insurance, and a support package to help towards the cost of living crisis - that same person would be highly unlikely to save £11,250 on their first home. 

That's because lenders typically offer mortgages at around four times your salary. This would mean someone earning £30,000 a year would only get a mortgage for around £120,000 meaning a property worth £500,000 is unaffordable for most without a £380,000 deposit. That's despite first-time buyers now paying no stamp duty on up to £425,000 (up from £300,000) as a result of the Budget.  

For more information on stamp duty and how much you might have to pay on a property, see our Stamp duty calculator. In addition, see our free guide here for first-time buyers. 

What does the Government say?

HM Treasury told MSE that the figures quoted in the tweet are based on the average London house price for first-time buyers and home movers, which is around £543,500. However, according to the UK House Price Index, the average house price for a first-time buyer in London is actually around £464,767.

A HM Treasury spokesperson said: "While the figures used were statistically accurate, we recognise that certain assumptions were made about the profile of the typical first time buyer which were not reflected in this tweet. We take responsible messaging very seriously – which is why we have deleted the tweet in question.”