The amount of stamp duty paid by first-time buyers has more than quadrupled since a holiday from the tax ended in April 2025, according to analysis. A first-time buyer purchasing a £400,000 property now pays £5,000 in stamp duty, whereas no tax would have been payable on that same home between autumn 2022 and April 2025. Before the cut to the tax-free allowance, 62% of homes for sale in England were priced under the first-time buyer threshold and free from stamp duty; now just 41% are in this price bracket.
The Treasury has raked in more than half of the stamp duty paid by first-time buyers from just one region, according to property portal Rightmove, though the specific region and exact breakdown across different regions remain unclear. Stamp duty is payable at 5% for first-time buyers on property value over £300,000, and relief is removed for those purchasing a starter home for more than £500,000. Experts argue that stamp duty is blocking the housing market, with older homeowners stuck in larger houses with empty bedrooms because they cannot afford to pay thousands of pounds in stamp duty to downsize.
Similarly, homeowners wanting to take a second step on the property ladder are stuck in homes too small for their growing families because they cannot afford to pay more money in tax. Nathan Emerson, chief executive of estate agent membership body Propertymark, stated that stamp duty continues to act as a barrier to entry and wider market movement and should be reviewed, with the reduction in the threshold raising upfront costs and reducing the availability of suitable homes, particularly in higher-value areas. The number of first-time buyers affected since April 2025 and any specific measures being considered by authorities to address these issues are not yet known, leaving the long-term impact on affordability and mobility uncertain.