Asking price discounts rise as Stamp Duty rush begins

First-time buyers are rushing to purchase homes before Stamp Duty thresholds change in April and there are signs of high discounts to get deals done, research suggests.

Hamptons has compiled data from some 550 estate agency branches across the Connells Group and said there has already been a particular uptick in purchases above £425,000, where new buyers face the biggest tax bill hikes.

The share of homes bought by first-time buyers across Great Britain increased to 31.8% in November and December 2024, the highest figure on record. 

Throughout the whole of 2024, first-time buyers purchased 31.2% of homes sold across the country, which in itself was also an all-time high, the research shows.

It comes as the first-time buyer Stamp Duty threshold is set to drop from £425,000 to £300,000 from April 2025. 

The change is expected to more than triple the proportion of first-time buyers liable for Stamp Duty from 8% to 26%. 

There’s been a particular increase in the share of first-time buyers purchasing more expensive homes, Hamptons said.

First-time buyers purchased a record 20.8% of £425,000+ homes sold in November and December, compared with 17.5% for the whole year and up from 14.5% in 2023.  In the past two months of 2024, 10% of first-time buyers paid more than £425,000 for their home, up from 8% for the whole of 2024. 

In contrast, the share of homes sold for below £300,000 to a first-time buyer fell to 34.1% in the final months of the year from 34.8% for the whole of 2025.  These new buyers won’t see their stamp duty bill rise next year, therefore there’s less of a rush. 

Sellers, many of whom are likely making onward purchases, were also willing to accept larger discounts towards the end of the year, Hamptons said.

The median discount more than doubled from £2,000 in the third quarter of 2024 to £5,000 in the fourth, surpassing the maximum £2,500 increase in a mover’s stamp duty bill from April.

Even so, the average seller in England & Wales achieved 98.1% of their final asking price in the final quarter of last year, a figure that remains higher than comparable pre-Covid periods.

The average first-time buyer secured a median £2,000 discount in Q4 2024, having been unable to secure a discount in Q3.  Those purchasing their first home which cost more than £300,000 managed to negotiate larger savings, with a median discount of £5,000.

 Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, said: 

“First-time buyers are making a dash for the finish line before Stamp Duty bills increase in April. 

“Movers, on the other hand, are in less of a hurry and have generally been more successful in negotiating bigger discounts to mitigate against a tax bill increase of up to £2,500.

“With completion times averaging around four months, many of those agreeing sales now find themselves cutting it fine.  Someone buying a freehold house will be more likely than someone buying a flat to complete before the end of March, with leasehold conveyancing times usually adding an extra month to the sale.  The next few weeks will be crucial for those hoping to avoid higher Stamp Duty bills.”

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