Buying a home: the true costs (including tax)
Stamp duty is only the start. Here is everything that lands between an accepted offer and the keys — across England, Scotland and Wales.
The deposit gets all the attention, but the gap between an accepted offer and the keys in your hand is full of costs people forget to budget for — and the biggest of them, stamp duty, got noticeably more expensive in April 2025. Here's the full picture across England, Scotland and Wales for 2025-26.
Stamp duty after April 2025
In England and Northern Ireland you pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in bands. On 1 April 2025 the temporary higher thresholds ended: the tax-free band dropped from £250,000 back to £125,000, and first-time buyer relief fell too. Many online calculators still quote the old figures — these are the current ones:
| Portion of price | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to £125,000 | 0% |
| £125,001 – £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,001 – £925,000 | 5% |
| £925,001 – £1.5m | 10% |
| Above £1.5m | 12% |
First-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 and 5% on the slice from £300,001 to £500,000. Above a £500,000 purchase price, the relief disappears entirely and you pay the standard rates.
Scotland and Wales
Scotland and Wales run their own systems with their own bands.
| Portion of price | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to £145,000 | 0% |
| £145,001 – £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,001 – £325,000 | 5% |
| £325,001 – £750,000 | 10% |
| Above £750,000 | 12% |
Scottish first-time buyers get a nil-rate band up to £175,000. In Wales, Land Transaction Tax (LTT) charges nothing up to £225,000, then 6% to £400,000, 7.5% to £750,000, 10% to £1.5m and 12% above — there's no first-time-buyer relief because the £225,000 threshold already covers most first homes.
The second-home surcharge
The other upfront costs
Beyond the tax, budget for these (typical 2025 UK ranges):
- Conveyancing / solicitor: ~£850–£1,500, often closer to £2,000 once VAT and disbursements are added.
- Searches: ~£250–£350.
- Survey: a basic Condition Report from ~£400; a HomeBuyer (Level 2) ~£400–£1,000; a full Building Survey ~£600–£1,500+.
- Mortgage fees: valuation ~£150–£800 (sometimes free); arrangement/product fee £0–£2,000.
- Land Registry fee: roughly £135–£330 for a typical home (scale by price).
- Removals: ~£300–£1,500+ depending on distance and volume.
The cost of your mortgage
Most lenders want a deposit of at least 5–10%. But the size of your deposit doesn't just decide whether you can buy — it decides your loan-to-value (LTV), and that drives your interest rate. Rates fall noticeably as you cross below 90% LTV, with the best deals around 60%. The same loan at 95% LTV can cost meaningfully more each month than at 90%. Lenders also stress-test affordability against a higher notional rate and against income multiples of around 4.5×.
The ongoing costs of owning
Don't forget buildings insurance (your lender will insist on it), and — if the property is leasehold — a service charge that commonly runs £1,000–£3,000+ a year.
Three worked examples
| Buyer | Price | SDLT |
|---|---|---|
| First-time buyer | £350,000 | £2,500 |
| Home mover | £600,000 | £20,000 |
| Second home | £600,000 | £50,000 |
The first-time buyer pays nothing up to £300,000 and 5% on the next £50,000. The home mover works up through the standard bands. The second-home buyer pays the same £20,000 plus a 5% surcharge on the whole £600,000 — £30,000 more. Tax alone is the difference between £2,500 and £50,000, which is exactly why it pays to run the numbers before you offer.
Sources & further reading
This guide is general information, not personal tax advice, and reflects the rules we believe to apply as at June 2026 — rates and thresholds change. Always check your own figures against HMRC and consider a qualified adviser before acting. You remain responsible for the accuracy of anything you file.
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