A survey of members conducted by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA), has produced one of the largest responses from estate agents with over 1350 replies, demonstrating what a contentious issue the recent stamp duty 'announcement' is and the effect it has had on the property market.

Alarmingly, just a week since the announcement the results indicate that 25% of agents now claim that a sale has fallen through as a direct result of the Chancellors comments. Whilst a staggering 92% of agents believe the Chancellors remarks have increased consumers concerns.

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Over the past four days members were asked a series of questions relating to the recent speculation that the Chancellor may grant a stamp duty holiday in Autumn. The results clearly demonstrate agent's strong feelings on how this situation has been handled and the impact this has had on the market to date.

Peter Bolton King, Chief Executive of the NAEA said: "Instead of the Government formulating a careful plan outlining their thoughts clearly and concisely with a clear time frame in mind, this comment was simply made off-the-cuff. This is not particularly helpful in the current climate. It seems that there had been little regard to how this speculative comment might impact on what is already a delicate market. These figures clearly show the effect that this 'loose' statement has had on consumers and the property market as a whole, none of which are encouraging."

The NAEA then went on to ask members 'have any applicants asked whether they should buy now or wait to see what the Chancellor says in the Autumn Pre-Budget Statement'. 75% of respondents stated 'yes' whilst only 25% of agents said 'no'.

(CD/JM)