The substantial reform of stamp duty announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement will mean savings for around 750,000 home buyers across England and Wales, according to Government statistics.

Robert Reed, joint head of residential sales at Wright Marshall, welcomes the reform.

He said: “Stamp duty was one of the great unreformed taxes – the old system was clumsily designed and brought about absurd inequality.

“The new system will remove awkward cut-off points and be far simpler for both buyers and sellers.

“It will have particular benefit for those buying at the £250,000 to £300,000 level, and that is obviously a key sector of the market.

“It is a huge step forward and we welcome it.”

The Government has not only removed the cliff edges of the slab structure in the market. More importantly, the changes mean the buyer of the average UK home outside London will pay much lower levels of stamp duty.

In particular, first-time buyers and second steppers will find it easier to raise the deposit needed to obtain mortgage finance, removing one of the major hurdles in the current market.

By contrast, around 17,000 transactions above a value of £937,000 will bear an increased stamp duty tax burden, undermining the case for any further taxation of high value property.

Mark Hazlehurst, estate agency manager for the Northwich office, said: “Reforms at the lower end of

the stamp duty rate bands will be very welcome news for those trying to get on, or trade up, the housing ladder.”

The proposals are likely to make the market more fluid generally, stimulating increased transactions across price ranges.

That could have a knock-on positive impact on consumer sentiment and the house building industry.