Chancellor Rishi Sunak says the stamp duty holiday on properties up to £500,000 will be extended from March 31 to June 30; from July 1, the holiday will apply only on properties up to £250,000 until the end of September.

It will not be until October 1 that the pre-Covid stamp duty thresholds and levels will resume.

This means that the maximum saving for buyers from the start of July until the end of September will be just £2,500 - sizeably less than the £15,000 saving possible under the current holiday, which continues until the end of June.

So far no details have been released on whether these dates will end with the hated 'cliff edge' or will be tapered to avoid a last minute disappointment for some buyers.

Making the announcement this afternoon, Sunak said: "The cut in stamp duty I announced last summer has helped hundreds of thousands of people buy a home and supported the economy at a critical time. But due to the sheer volume of transactions we're seeing, many new purchases won't complete in time for the end of March."

Chancellor Sunak has also confirmed that there will be government-guaranteed 95 per cent mortgage loans available from next month, on the purchase of properties up to the value of £600,000.

Sunak also says there will be a 100 per cent Business Rates Holiday until the end of June; thereafter business rates will be discounted by two thirds up to a maximum of £2m for larger businesses. However, Corporation Tax is to rise sharply from 2023 - some details below.

There has been no announcement on Capital Gains Tax, prompting speculation this will be the subject of extensive consultation beginning on March 23 with the release of so-called 'tax day' proposals.

This latest announcement is great news for the property market and the economy as a whole as it offers continued stability, and we expect to see interest in our auctions continue.

With the new deadline being just 17 weeks away (a deadline which might not be achievable on the open market) selling your property by auction, with a fixed completion date of approx. 56 days, you could still take advantage of the stamp duty holiday by selling your property in our 24/7 online auction.

Our extensive 3 week marketing campaign to include marketing on the three main portals - Rightmove, Zoopla and One Dome, email marketing to our extensive database of over 60,000 potential purchasers,  and social media we believe we can achieve the best price possible for your property.

Please contact us to arrange a free no obligation auction valuation or give call us on +44 (0) 203 355 8785 for advice and to talk through your selling options.