Nearly one in five potential movers waiting for Budget before resuming plans

• A new Rightmove study of over 10,000 potential movers looks at how Budget speculation is affecting decisions
• Nearly one in five (17%) potential movers said they have paused their plans due to uncertainty about changes to property taxes in the upcoming Budget
• The majority (61%) of potential movers surveyed said they were aware of rumours about changes to property taxes in the Budget, with nearly 8 in 10 (79%) of this group concerned:
  • Those aged 55 and over (81%) were most likely to say they were concerned about potential property tax changes, with many of the rumours affecting the upper end of the market
  • Regionally, those living in the South East (81%) and South West (81%) were most likely to say they were concerned about these potential new property taxes
• Research amongst Rightmove’s in-house panel found that one of the most commonly suggested improvements to the current stamp duty system was to be able to spread payments over time

Ahead of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget, new research from Rightmove, the UK’s largest property platform, shows how speculation around the contents of the Budget is affecting buyer and seller confidence.

In a study of over 10,000 people who were either actively in the process of moving home or considering moving, nearly one in five (17%) said they have paused their plans due to uncertainty about changes to property taxes in the upcoming Budget.

Budget anxiety is widespread. The majority (61%) of respondents said they were aware of rumoured property tax changes, and nearly 8 in 10 (79%) of this group said they were concerned about them.

Those aged 55 and over were most likely to say they were concerned (81%), perhaps unsurprising given the majority of rumoured tax reforms have so far targeted homes at the upper end of the market.

Regionally, those living in the South East (81%) and South West (81%) were most likely to say they were concerned about potential new property taxes. Again, this is perhaps unsurprising given the south of England would be disproportionately affected by the so-far rumoured tax changes.

Changes to property taxes have been discussed since August. Potential tax changes include an overhaul of the stamp duty system, council tax changes, and a mansion tax charge for homeowners of properties valued higher than £2 million pounds.

Separate research amongst Rightmove’s own in-house research panel, found that one of the most commonly suggested reforms to the stamp duty system was the ability to spread payments over time.

Other frequent suggestions included adjusting stamp duty thresholds by region to make payments fairer, and changes that protect older homemovers and downsizers.

Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert said, “Our latest House Price Index showed how market activity is being affected by the various property tax rumours being discussed ahead of the Budget. Now, we’ve heard directly from home-movers about how it’s denting their confidence, with some preferring to wait until after the Budget to see how any policy announcements affect their plans.  While most movers are carrying on as normal, it demonstrates how unhelpful the uncertainty over potentially costly changes can be. I think most are now fed up with the rumours and would like to see the final contents of the Budget and assess how they’re impacted.”

ENDS

About Rightmove

• Rightmove has the UK’s largest selection of properties for sale and to rent, adds more listings than anyone else, and over 80% of all time spent on property portals is on Rightmove
• Rightmove’s vision is to give everyone the belief that they can make their move by giving people the best place to turn and return to for access to tools and expertise to make it happen
• Users can search Rightmove for residential resale, new homes, rentals, built for rent, commercial property and overseas properties. Rightmove also provide an extensive range of tools and information assisting their home moving journey, including but not limited to: local sold prices, online property valuation, agent visit requests, moving guides, mortgage in principle certification, renovation calculator, extension explorer, home services for renters like utilities, media and insurance, school information, moving guides and sustainability information
• Partners (Rightmove’s customers) include the following key groups: estate agents, letting agents, new homes developers, rental operators, commercial property operators, overseas property agents, financial services operators and home services providers for insurance, utilities and media
• Using the UK’s largest housing datasets, we issue a number of regular reports to track housing market indicators: our monthly House Price Index (established 2002), quarterly Rental Trends Tracker (established 2015), weekly Mortgage Rates Tracker (established 2023) and quarterly Commercial Insights Tracker (established 2024). Historical data is available on request
• Founded in 2000, Rightmove listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2006 and is a member of the FTSE 100 index