- All “zero carbon” homes valued up to £500,000 will be exempt from stamp duty until 2012, Gordon Brown, the chancellor of the exchequer, announced in his budget last week. In order to qualify, properties must generate enough energy through devices such as wind turbines and solar panels to offset their overall emission of greenhouse gases. The Home Builders Federation, which represents 97% of UK developers, says no mainstream housebuilders satisfy these criteria at present. Also of interest to homeowners is the increase in the inheritance-tax threshold, which will rise from £285,000 to £350,000 by 2010.

-The average asking price for homes on sale in England and Wales climbed 1.5%, or £3,381, in February, taking the annual rise to 12.2%, says Rightmove, a property website. “The shortage of supply has more than compensated for the impact of the January interest-rate rise,” it says. The site predicts that the market will weaken as more properties go on sale ahead of the introduction of Home Information Packs on June 1.

- The Home Builders Federation, which represents developers, says the housing crisis is worsening. It claims 223,000 new homes will be needed in England alone each year until 2016 — but only 160,000 are being built annually. “Young people are finding it increasingly hard to buy their own homes, as the shortage of supply continues to fuel house-price inflation,” it says.

- Prices of the most expensive homes in central London have soared by 5.6% in January and February alone, says Knight Frank, a top-end estate agency, making its predictions of a 12% year-on-year price rise in central London by the end of 2007 look already too low. It attributes the rise to a shortage of stock, especially in Belgravia, South Kensington and Chelsea, where there is continuing high demand from overseas buyers.

nHomes are selling faster — but only just. The National Association of Estate Agents, which represents about a third of agents, says it now takes an average of 16 weeks from putting a property on sale to the owner accepting an offer — down from 17 weeks a month ago.

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