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I know I’m a cocktail or two into the night (it’s past midnight here) so I’ve clearly not explained it correctly. BTL properties don’t get this tax benefit. Ideally it should be limited to first time buyers only imo.
jaw-
I wasn't assuming that BTLs would be included.
Bottom line I think that the benefits of these types of tax breaks predominantly accrue to property owners and sellers in the form of higher prices rather than to buyers in the form of cheaper mortgages. That's the reality of a market with a high elasticity of supply.
NickCJ
You can achieve all of that more equitably by building more social housing and taxing BTLs. Primary residence mortgage relief is just a bung to the voting middle classes, and as your figures suggest, it has not led to a higher rate of homeownership in the Netherlands than the UK.
I really don't think that the overheated UK housing market needs any more demand-side stimulus.