{"id":241742,"date":"2023-11-25T01:25:26","date_gmt":"2023-11-25T01:25:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lovemainstream.com\/?p=241742"},"modified":"2023-11-25T01:25:26","modified_gmt":"2023-11-25T01:25:26","slug":"four-hidden-announcements-in-the-autumn-statement-document-and-its-good-news-for-savers-and-first-time-buyers-the-sun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lovemainstream.com\/lifestyle\/four-hidden-announcements-in-the-autumn-statement-document-and-its-good-news-for-savers-and-first-time-buyers-the-sun\/","title":{"rendered":"Four hidden announcements in the Autumn Statement document – and it's good news for savers and first-time buyers | The Sun"},"content":{"rendered":"
FIRST-time buyers and savers are getting extra support under a few changes hidden in Autumn Statement documents.<\/p>\n
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his Autumn Statement\u00a0this afternoon and set out his plans for taxes and\u00a0spending.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mr Hunt\u00a0vowed to "reduce debt, cut taxes and reward work" as he\u00a0unveiled a package\u00a0aimed at saving cash-strapped Brits and turbo-charging the economy.<\/p>\n
He slashed National Insurance, boosted Universal Credit benefits and put up the national living wage.<\/p>\n
In his speech today, some of the biggest changes Jeremy Hunt announced included:<\/p>\n
Below we round up key announcements not mentioned by Mr Hunt, but that can be found in the official documents.<\/p>\n The Chancellor announced that the rate on hand-rolling tobacco will increase by RPI + 12% this year. <\/p>\n However, the Autumn Statment documents have revealed that duty rates on all tobacco products, including packaged cigarettes, will increase continue to increase by RPI +2%.<\/p>\n These changes will take effect from 6pm on November 22 2023 and will be included in the Autumn Finance Bill 2023.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Taxing tobacco is a huge revenue-raiser for the government, with \u00a310.7billion collected in 2022, which was 1.2% of the total tax taken.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mr Sunak, now Prime Minister,\u00a0previously revealed he wants to make Britain "smoke-free"\u00a0by 2040.<\/p>\n In his\u00a0speech at the\u00a0Conservative Party\u00a0conference this year\u00a0in\u00a0Manchester, he announced that children currently\u00a0under 14 will never be able to legally\u00a0buy\u00a0cigarettes\u00a0in their lifetime.<\/p>\n The hope is that the ever-increasing price of cigs will deter more people from buying them.<\/p>\n First-time buyers will get more help to get on the property ladder, the Chancellor has confirmed.<\/p>\n In a move to help budding buyers, the Chancellor has announced that the\u00a0mortgage guarantee scheme\u00a0is to be extended.<\/p>\n It's designed to help households with a smaller deposit purchase their homes.<\/p>\n It was originally announced as part of the\u00a02021 Budget\u00a0and was set to end on December 31 this year.<\/p>\n That's now been extended for another 18 months and will end in June 2025.<\/p>\n Under the programme,\u00a0house buyers\u00a0need just a \u00a310,000 deposit to be able to afford a \u00a3200,000 home.<\/p>\n It enables buyers to take out a mortgage worth 95% loan to value (LTV), meaning only a 5% deposit is needed.<\/p>\n Typically buyers need a 10% deposit and take out a home loan for the remaining 90%.<\/p>\n So far, the scheme has helped over 24,000 households.<\/p>\n Under the scheme, the Government guarantees part of borrowers' home loans, reducing the risk on the loans.<\/p>\n It means that if the borrower is unable to pay one month, the state will pick up the bill – although it is highly likely there will still be repercussions for borrowers if this happens.<\/p>\n The scheme slashes the minimum amount\u00a0first-time buyers\u00a0need to purchase their first homes by half.<\/p>\n For example, a 10% deposit for a \u00a3300,00 home is \u00a330,000 but under the programme, buyers would need just \u00a315,000 for a deposit worth 5%.<\/p>\n On a \u00a3400,000 house, buyers would need to fork out \u00a320,000 compared to \u00a340,000, or \u00a325,000 instead of \u00a350,000 on a \u00a3300,000 home.<\/p>\n The scheme runs for properties worth up to \u00a3600,000, which would see the minimum deposit required lowered from \u00a360,000 to \u00a330,000.<\/p>\n But while the scheme will help those struggling to scrape a deposit together, buyers will still need to earn a certain amount to be able to borrow a big enough mortgage.<\/p>\n Lenders will typically\u00a0lend borrowers up to four or five times their salary.<\/p>\n So to buy a \u00a3600,000 house with a 5% deposit, you'd need to have a combined income of a minimum of \u00a3135,000 a year.<\/p>\n A major downside of these loans, however, is that the interest rates are often considerably higher than you\u2019d pay with a higher LTV mortgage.\u00a0<\/p>\n If house prices continue to drop – which is expected next year – this increases the risk of ending up in negative equity.<\/p>\n It means your house is worth less than the mortgage you owe, making it difficult to remortgage at a favourable rate.<\/p>\n You'll also still be in debt, even if you sell the property.<\/p>\n The government is making changes to simplify ISAs and provide more choice, meaning it will be easier for people to choose the best ISA accounts for their needs and move money between them.<\/p>\n The government will allow multiple subscriptions to ISAs of the same type every year from April 2024.<\/p>\n It will also allow partial transfers of ISA funds in-year between providers from April 2024.<\/p>\n The government will also raise the account opening age for any adult ISAs to 18 from April 2024 – up from 16.<\/p>\n However, it is freezing the ISA annual allowance at \u00a320,000, Junior ISAs at \u00a39,000 a year and Lifetime ISAs at \u00a34,000 a year.<\/p>\n An individual savings account (ISA) is a type of tax-free savings account.<\/p>\n Savers don't pay tax on any savings interest earned.<\/p>\n The most common types are cash ISAs and stocks and shares ISAs, where your\u00a0money\u00a0is invested in the stock market.<\/p>\n Each year, everyone over the age of 16 gets an\u00a0ISA allowance\u00a0of \u00a320,000.<\/p>\n This means that they can earn interest on their savings in a\u00a0bank, building society or another financial provider, without paying tax.<\/p>\n The maximum amount you can put away for the 2022\/23 tax year is \u00a320,000.<\/p>\n There is no limit to the number of ISAs you can have, but you can only pay into one of each type in a single tax year.\u00a0<\/p>\n To support low-income households to build savings, the government is also reforming the Help to Save scheme, which aims to encourage low-income workers to save for short-term and long-term term goals and kickstart a lifelong savings habit, through adding a bonus to savings.<\/p>\n The new design will ensure the scheme's sustainability as a key savings product, encourage take-up and provide the best value for taxpayers.<\/p>\n The new design will be published in due course, alongside the launch of a consultation on the most effective way to deliver it.<\/p>\n Under the scheme, the government gives you 50p for every \u00a31 you save in your account over four years.<\/p>\n You can save between \u00a31 and \u00a350 each calendar month and pay the money in via standing order or bank transfer.<\/p>\n That means if you put the maximum \u00a350 in each month from April 2023 for two years you would get back \u00a3600 from the government in total.<\/p>\n Just under 400,000 people have opened a\u00a0Help to Save\u00a0account since\u00a0it launched in September 2018, according to the government's recent figures.<\/p>\n You can open a Help to Save account if you are:<\/p>\n You can apply for an account via Gov.UK.<\/p>\n<\/picture>PAY RISE <\/span><\/p>\n
Up to 27million workers to get hundreds back in their pocket in huge tax cut<\/h3>\n
<\/picture>TAX CUT <\/span><\/p>\n
Self-employed to get \u00a3350 income boost thanks to Autumn Statement<\/h3>\n
Duty rates for cigarettes<\/h2>\n
Most read in Money<\/h2>\n
<\/picture>HOLY SMOKE <\/span><\/p>\n
Cost of cigarette pack to rise from TONIGHT in huge blow to smokers<\/h3>\n
<\/picture>PAY RISE <\/span><\/p>\n
Up to 27million workers to get hundreds back in their pocket in huge tax cut<\/h3>\n
<\/picture>BANG FOR BUCK <\/span><\/p>\n
Pay day for Brits as Hunt’s mini-Budget boosts purses\u00a0but hikes tobacco price<\/h3>\n
<\/picture>PAY DAY <\/span><\/p>\n
Pay rise for millions of lowest-paid Brits confirmed – check if you qualify<\/h3>\n
Mortgage help for first-time buyers<\/h2>\n
How does the scheme work?<\/h3>\n
ISA changes<\/h2>\n
How do ISAs work?<\/h3>\n
Help to Save scheme changes<\/h2>\n
How does it work?<\/h3>\n
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