Number of London properties under offer 'at its highest since before Brexit' says Foxtons
Number of London properties under offer 'at its highest since before Brexit' says Foxtons
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First-time buyers are streaming back into the London property market ahead of higher stamp duty rates coming into effect in April, the capital’s biggest estate agency chain said today. Foxtons said it started the year with its fullest pipeline of properties “under offer” since before Brexit, in large party due to the debut buyer rush.
In a trading update the company said: “The growth in the under-offer pipeline is partly driven by first-time buyer activity ahead of increased stamp duty rates from April 2025, which may result in some buyer activity being accelerated into Q1 2025 ahead of the deadline.”.
Currently first-time buyers benefit from a range of reliefs first announced when Liz Truss was Prime Minister in 2022 to help young workers climb on the property ladder. Under the scheme first-timers pay no stamp duty for properties changing hands for less than £425,000 and only 5% from £425,000 to £625,00. However, from April 1 this will revert to a nil rate up to just £300,000, well below the average price of a first-time buyer property in London, while the 5% rate will apply only up to £500,000.
That means from April 1 the average first-time buyer in London will face a stamp duty bill of around £5,600 compared to nothing today in many cases. Foxtons said revenue grew by 11% to around £163 million last year adjusted operating profit up by a third to around £19 million. Both figures are ahead of market expectations.
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