Budget 2025 market data & home-mover and agent insight
- Speculation about property tax changes is fuelling uncertainty across much of the market
- Rightmove research found that home-movers would favour staggered stamp duty payments, while a poll of estate agents also suggested that staggered payments would be a preferable change to shifting payment to the seller
Rightmove data on rumoured property tax changes
Mansion Tax
- Sales agreed for £2 million+ homes, which are the subject of a potential mansion tax, are down 13% year-on-year
- Homes priced between £500,000 and £2 million, which would be impacted by potential stamp duty changes in England, or perhaps the rumoured capital gains tax, have seen sales agreed drop by 8% year-on-year
- The under £500,000 market has been less impacted, with sales agreed down by only 4% on this time last year. This mass-market sector is likely being unsettled by general Budget jitters rather than specific policy rumours
- Less than 0.5% of all homes sales agreed this year have been for properties with an asking price of over £2 million
- Around 1% of homes for sale are priced above £2 million
Stamp duty
- Just under a third (30%) of homes for sale in England are priced at over £500,000, and would be subject to the proposed new annual property tax which would replace stamp duty
- In London, more than half of homes (59%) have an asking price of over £500,000 and would be subject to the rumoured annual property tax if it came in, versus just 8% in the North East
- A fifth (19%) of agreed property sales so far this year in England have been for homes over £500,000 but this varies regionally:
- In London, more than half (52%) of agreed property sales so far this year have been over £500,000
- In the North East, just 4% of agreed property sales have been for homes over £500,000 so far this year
Capital Gains Tax
- Just over 1% of all home sales agreed this year have been for properties over £1.5 million, and would be subject to the potential new capital gains tax if it came into effect. However, the regional impact is varied:
-
- In London, one in ten (11%) of homes for sale are in this price bracket, with 5% of agreed sales so far this year being for homes above £1.5 million
- In the South West, 0.7% of agreed sales are in the £1.5 million price band, with 2% of available homes for sale in this price bracket
- In the North East, just 0.1% of agreed sales are in this upper-end bracket, with only 0.5% of all properties available for sale priced at over £1.5 million
Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert commented: “Rumours of the contents of the forthcoming Budget are affecting the market, as we’re seeing a greater hesitation in sales activity, especially at the upper end, which has been the focus of most of the discussion. While there is also a general unease at how the Budget may impact personal finances, the majority of home moves would be unaffected by the rumoured changes to property taxes. However, we’re also seeing the uncertainty surrounding the Budget dent the confidence of some potential movers, and I think most are now fed up with the rumours and just want to see how their finances are going to be impacted.”
Stamp duty opinions
What do home-movers want?
- Research amongst Rightmove’s in-house panel found that one of the most common suggestions to improve the stamp duty system is enabling the payment to be spread over a longer time period, in more manageable chunks
- Other ideas include adjusting the thresholds by region and introducing protection for downsizers
What would agents like to see?
Rightmove invited estate agents to share their views on stamp duty, and whether changes could have a positive impact on the market.
- The majority who responded viewed the rumour of replacing stamp duty with an annual seller tax negatively, and most thought the current system could either be changed in some way or abolished entirely
- Staggering payments, as suggested by home-movers, was viewed as a better improvement to the current system than shifting the tax onto the sellers’ side, as the government is rumoured to be considering
Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert said: “We’ve been calling for stamp duty reform for some time now, as it’s a significant barrier for many people moving home. Abolishing it completely would unlock more moves at all stages of the property ladder, but there are also ways the system can be improved.
“Speaking with both home-movers and agents it’s clear the current system is not working. We need to look at ways the upfront payment of stamp duty is not a deterrent for people to move. While getting rid of the tax completely would be an obvious way to do this, making the payment more flexible, fairer regionally, and increasing the zero-rate thresholds would all be an improvement on the current set-up.”
Further Rightmove market data
Current average stamp duty charges by region
| Region | Average asking price | Stamp duty paid by a home-mover based on average asking price | Stamp duty paid by a first-time buyer based on average asking price |
| East Midlands | £284,531 | £4,227 | £0 |
| East of England | £414,260 | £10,713 | £5,731 |
| London | £669,040 | £23,452 | £23,452 |
| North East | £194,267 | £1,386 | £0 |
| North West | £264,683 | £3,235 | £0 |
| South East | £467,271 | £13,364 | £8,364 |
| South West | £370,853 | £8,543 | £3,543 |
| West Midlands | £291,818 | £4,591 | £0 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | £249,810 | £2,497 | £0 |
Average asking price by region
| Region | Average asking price November 2025 | Year-on-year change |
| UK | £364,833 | -0.5% |
| East Midlands | £284,531 | -0.8% |
| East of England | £414,260 | -0.6% |
| London | £669,040 | -2.1% |
| North East | £194,267 | 2.4% |
| North West | £264,683 | 1.9% |
| Scotland | £194,037 | 0.4% |
| South East | £467,271 | -0.9% |
| South West | £370,853 | -1.1% |
| Wales | £261,305 | 0.5% |
| West Midlands | £291,818 | 1.3% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £249,810 | 0.0% |
You May Also Enjoy
95% of estate agents say homebuying reforms could speed up property transactions
Private rent and house prices, UK: July 2026
Tenant demand continues to strengthen in Q2
Breaking Property News 22/7/26
Conveyancing keeps providing stability in uncertain market