Yorkshire Building Society has increased the cashback on its first time buyer mortgages to help new homeowners cover the cost of the increase in Stamp Duty.

On New Year’s Day 2010, the stamp duty holiday currently enjoyed by homeowners buying properties valued between £125,000 and £175,000 will end, leaving them with a 1% tax bill, which is levied on properties bought up to the value of £250,000.

Yorkshire Building Society is therefore increasing the cashback payable on its first time buyer mortgages from £500 to 1% of the total loan, with immediate effect.

First time homeowners can therefore choose between a three-year fixed rate mortgage at 5.84% and a five-year fixed rate product at 5.99%. In addition to the 1% cashback, both mortgages come with a free valuation, free legal fees and there are no other upfront mortgage fees to pay.

The maximum LTV is 85%.

Iain Cornish, chief executive of Yorkshire Building Society, said: “Buying your first home is a very expensive business. We have therefore designed these new mortgages to take some of the financial pressure off first time buyers. There are no fees to pay when they take out the mortgage and the cashback will help cover the cost of the stamp duty