The government should tax property ‘hoarders’ cashing in on the UK housing market says a left-leaning think tank.

A report by the New Economics Foundation and the Homes for Us Coalition estimates that up to £5.7 billion a year could be raised through higher stamp duty and by closing national insurance tax loopholes allegedly open to wealthy UK property hoarders. 

The groups claim that trebling the additional homes stamp duty surcharge to nine per cent for multiple homeowners and six per cent for non-resident house buyers, as well as closing the apparent NI loophole, could raise up to £5.7 billion and fund 31,000 new social homes annually. 

Alex Diner of the New Economics Foundation, says: “Some buy-to-let landlords have been hit as interest rates have risen, but equity rich speculators have been cashing in and hoarding property within our broken housing system.  
 
“The rental market is broken, with too many families forced to pay extortionate rents. Higher interest rates have not led to a mass exodus of landlords from the market. 

“But the fact that some now wish to sell is a huge opportunity for social landlords and first-time buyers to take these homes off their hands. But this is being squandered. If you’re a first-time buyer hit by mortgage hikes, you probably feel stung right now by cash buyer landlords who can swoop in and undercut on price.  
 
“We should tax property speculators more to curb their buying power and use the money to build more social homes. It’s also time we closed the tax loopholes that mean most landlords don’t pay national insurance on their property income. 
 
“Ordinary families are struggling pay rent during this cost-of-living crisis. Higher stamp duty on debt free property speculators would level the playing field for renters and first time buyers, raise billions and help ease our chronic social housing shortage.” 

NEF claims that two-fifths of landlords have no borrowing but it alleges that as rents spiked during the cost-of-living crisis these debt-free landlords are likely to have seen their incomes significantly boosted. 

The report also claims that the number of UK properties owned by overseas residents tripled from 60,366 in early 2010 to 181,701 by summer 2021. 

As of July 2022, non-UK residents owned £90.7 billion of property in England and Wales, £45.3 billion of which is in London.