Rightmove stats and comment ahead of Autumn Statement
Stamp Duty
- The average stamp duty that a home-mover (not a first-time buyer) pays is currently £5,607 (based on the average asking price of £362,143)
- 29% of homes on the market are currently exempt from stamp duty for all home-movers (excluding second homes, anything £250,000 or below)
- 62% of homes on the market are currently exempt from stamp duty for first-time buyers (anything £425,000 or below)
- The percentage of properties that are on the market by the current different stamp duty bands are all follows:
- £250,000 and below – 29.3% of properties
- £250,001 to £925,000 – 62.4% of properties
- £925,000 – £1.5 million – 5.1% of properties
- Anything above £1.5 million – 3.2% of properties
- If the stamp duty cut was on all properties up to £500,000, it would mean 72% of properties in England would be exempt from stamp duty
Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s property expert says: “Stamp Duty was changed as recently as a year ago, albeit only temporarily until March 2025, so further changes so soon would seem unlikely. Further cuts or a permanent change to the thresholds would be welcomed by many, particularly by affordability-stretched first-time buyers. However, further stamp duty cuts are unlikely to lead to a rush of activity, as buyers would need to weigh up any benefit in savings against higher mortgage rates and their monthly mortgage payments.”
Mortgage guarantee scheme
- Analysis using the latest earnings data from ONS shows single first-time buyers on the average salary could not afford to use the government’s 95% mortgage guarantee scheme on three quarters of properties in the typical first-time buyer market
- In London, a single first-time buyer on an average London salary could afford only 2% of properties using this 5% deposit scheme, compared to 67% of properties for those in the North East:
- Westminster, Islington & Camden top the list of areas where a single first-time buyer could afford the smallest proportion of typical first-time buyer homes for sale on the average salary
- Options to use the scheme greatly open up for those buying with a partner, friend or family member, with 70% of first-time buyer properties in Great Britain within the affordability limit of the average two-person income
- Rightmove suggests more options could be considered to help people buying on their own to get on the property ladder
Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s property expert says: “Having enough affordable homes in the right places has been an ongoing challenge. It’s clear from our analysis that people trying to buy on their own on the average salary are likely to be priced out of the majority of homes without significant financial help from elsewhere. The government is likely looking at multiple options and how they could help home-movers, and so we wanted to highlight that this group would particularly welcome any help or incentives.”
Matt Smith, Rightmove’s mortgage expert adds: “Any focus and support for those with the smallest deposits is always going to be welcome. However, in reality the mortgage guarantee scheme is only able to help a very small portion of movers, with the majority of first time buyers preferring to get the affordability benefits of saving for a bigger deposit . If the scheme was cancelled then it may be seen as a disappointing outcome by some, but in reality it’s unlikely to have a significant impact on consumer choice, as many lenders are offering 5% deposit deals outside of the government scheme.”
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