Ahead of today’s delayed Autumn budget, which chancellor Jeremy Hunt will deliver, mortgage brokers have called for stamp duty benefits to remain and for stabilisation of the housing sector.

The budget was pushed back from 31 October to allow Sunak more time to scrutinise the figures and formulate the government’s plans for the UK’s finances.

The budget will be delivered alongside the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) forecast.

In former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget in September under then prime minister Liz Truss, a flurry of new stamp duty thresholds was announced. 

Kwarteng also eradicated stamp duty or purchases of land and buildings for commercial or new residential development.

R3 Mortgages director Riz Malik says it will be Rishi Sunak’s “first big test as prime minister”.

Discussing what he expects to feature in the budget, Malik says: “First-time buyers are likely to keep their stamp duty benefits, which will help counter increased financing costs.”

“The net effect on UK households of the Autumn Statement is that we will all be worse off. Some worse than others.”

Finanze chief economist Edgar Rayo says there are two things he would like to see in today’s announcement. 

Rayo explains: “First, an assurance that the housing sector will be stabilised through ‘concrete’ programmes that will support new affordable house development, and a better replacement of the Help-to-Buy scheme instead of the less popular Lifetime ISA that comes with a high penalty and a £450,000 price cap.”

“Second, Sunak must outline his plans for getting struggling enterprises caught by the cost-of-living crisis out of their current situation.”

“There should be programmes that will raise enterprise productivity swiftly and alternative measures since Hunt repealed IR35 legislation that could have been necessary to mitigate in part the shortage of available workers.”

Meanwhile, Create Finance owner and mortgage broker Gindy Mathoon comments: “The housing market needs a boost, with no more Help to Buy and affordability tests being more stringent – first-time buyers are finding it even more difficult to get on the property ladder.”

Mathoon says he would “expect some changes in this department, especially with the last regime changing stamp duty tariffs”.

The government “needs to ensure house prices remain stable and do not dip,” he adds. 

Self Employed Mortgage Hub director Graham Cox says: “The technocratic Jeremy Hunt has taken to reversing Liz Truss’s mini-budget with the air of a grim reaper. But I don’t sense that he understands we can’t simply tax everyone more to pay down the debt. That will never work, we need radical growth measures instead so that debt falls as a percentage of GDP.”

Cox says for all Truss’ “mistakes in delivery, the broad thrust of Truss’ growth plan was a good one” and notes, “I’m not sure Hunt has the imagination to reshape the economy”.

“What I expect to see is huge tax hikes, years of more austerity and policies to prop up house prices at their currently insane levels. For the love of God no more Help to Buy, or as it should be called, Help for Housebuilders.”

“It doesn’t seem to have occurred to the government that high house prices and rents are a major part of the reason we’re in this economic mess,” he adds.