People buying their first-time home in the UK face higher upfront costs than last year, thanks to stamp duty changes introduced in April 2025.
This is according to data from online property platform Rightmove, which found that the stamp duty paid by first-time buyers has soared in the last year, paying £408 million in stamp duty between April 2025 and March 2026.
The year before, the total amount paid in stamp duty by first-time buyers was just £101 million.
The increase in stamp duty paid by first-time buyers is largely due to a change in the tax threshold in April 2025. The year before, first-time buyers paid no stamp duty on homes priced up to £425,000.
In April 2025, however, this threshold was reduced back to £300,000, encompassing 59% of homes listed for sale. Previously, 62% of homes for sale were below the stamp duty threshold; that figure is now at 41%.
This change means that the average stamp duty bill for a first-time buyer has increased by £4,618 in the past year, adding a higher extra upfront cost to complete their purchase.
Rightmove noted that homes priced between £300,001 and £425,000 collectively generated an estimated £145 million in stamp duty from first-time buyers over the past year.
More expensive homes are more heavily impacted by these changes. Homes priced between £500,001 and £625,000 now face an average stamp duty bill of £18,260, up by more than £11,000 compared with the previous year.
Rightmove called for stamp duty thresholds to be permanently updated, which they have not been since 2017, despite house price growth across the country.
“First-time buyers are already facing significant challenges, from higher mortgage costs to rising rents while they save. Reducing up-front moving costs would make a real difference,” said Rightmove property expert Colleen Babcock.
“These figures show how many more homes now fall outside the zero-rate threshold, reducing choice and increasing the cash buyers need just to get through the door. Stamp duty has become a growing barrier, and a permanent review of thresholds is long overdue.”
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