We noted with interest Finance Minister John Swinney’s draft budget yesterday.

With the proposed 3% levy on the purchase of many second homes from April 2016, this will obviously have the greatest impact on buy-to-let investors and it will be interesting to see how much of an impact this will have. Will they be discouraged from certain purchases given the 3% extra charge on top of the existing LBTT?

In the end it will come down to individual investors and whether the 3% levy is worth the investment and if it will hinder their return.

Conversely the one group this levy could well help is first time buyers. Many buy-to-let investors will be looking at the lower end of the property ladder and if it is more expensive for them to buy, this could lead to more power to first time buyers.

As with related property changes such as last year’s LBTT, it will be a case of watching the response and seeing how the market reacts.