Estate agents in Merseyside are welcoming the news that stamp duty will be scrapped for first-time buyers purchasing properties costing up to £250,000.

The move, which will apply during this year and next year, will mean nine out of 10 people buying their first home will not be liable for the tax.

The change will offer some relief to hard-pressed first-time buyers, who currently have to save up deposits averaging 25% of their home’s value.

It will be funded through the introduction of a new stamp duty band of 5% on properties costing more than £1m from April next year.

Around 92% of first-time buyers would have been exempt from stamp duty during 2009 if the threshold had been £250,000, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

People buying their first home in London and the South East will be the biggest winners as a result of the increase, with 74% of first-time buyers in the capital and 72% in the South East buying homes priced between £125,000 and £250,000 during 2009, followed by 61% of people in the South West.

But at the other end of the scale only 15% of buyers in the North are likely to benefit from the move, rising to 20% in both Wales and Yorkshire and Humberside.

James Kersh, a director of one of Merseyside’s biggest estate agencies, Sutton Kersh, said the measures could stimulate recovery in the local housing market.

He added: “A vast improvement in the availability of mortgages remains key to the recovery of the housing market. The budget announcement of stamp duty being doubled to £250,000 should help to stimulate the first time buyer and lower end of the market.

“Increased activity in these markets should then filter in to the broader market. Properties valued at £250,000 or less account for a large proportion of the local market.

“If Lloyds Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland increase their lending as requested by the Government, then this teamed with the new stamp duty rules, should aid further recovery in the housing market.”

Daniel Stear of Kirwans Solicitors also welcomed the announcement from the Chancellor.

He said: “Today’s announcement by the Chancellor that stamp duty will be removed on properties up to £250,000 for first time buyers is extremely welcome news, which will hopefully go some way to kick-start the property market. 

“Although there is activity in the housing market, first time buyers are the key and at present they are facing an uphill struggle to raise enough money for deposits.  What the market needs right now is a boost in confidence and today’s changes should go a long way to providing that.

“Scrapping stamp duty up to £250,000 will provide a much needed relief for cash strapped first time buyers, and the measure will help to inject life back into a still fragile housing market.”

Louis Anastasiou, managing director of  estate agents Andrew Louis described the doubling of the allowance as “fantastic” but said more could be done to help the market.

He added: “The government needs to do more to make finance more available to first and second-time buyers.

“Enquiries are coming through and have trebled on last year, credit ratings are strong but wannabe buyers are finding it hard to get finance.”

However, not everyone in the Merseyside property sector was so easily impressed.

Chris Johnson, managing partner of Wirral-based agency Smith and Sons said the stamp duty change was a “headline grabber” but was sceptical whether or not it would produce real benefits for the market.

He added: “While the threshold for stamp duty has doubled from £125,000 to £250,000, for the following two years and as this government remains in power, this is only applicable for first-time buyers, therefore anyone who has previously owned a property will not be eligible for this relief.

“In addition, as bank finance remains difficult to obtain, I believe that this proposal, while welcome, may not have any particularly wide ranging effects.”

And Alan Binks of Homelets also said: “Undoubtedly this is a good move but realistically what first time buyer can afford a £25,000 deposit on a £250,000 house?

“And that’s the absolute minimum. Having said that the stall in the buyers market has had a great impact on the rental market and this should help that further as many tenants are frustrated buyers saving up for their deposit. I can’t see that changing this year.

“Hopefully they’ll make it easier for people to sell their homes so we can get more stack and satisfy demand.”