37,000 First-Time Buyers Paid Stamp Duty Despite Claiming Relief

Key Takeaways

36,999 first-time buyers paid SDLT in 2024-25 despite successfully claiming FTB relief (HMRC data obtained by the money app Plum under freedom of information)
1 in 4 FTB relief claimants ended up paying tax: relief reduced but did not eliminate the bill
The average FTB stamp duty bill was £4,073 among those who paid
13,529 first-time buyers paid £5,000 or more in stamp duty
1,285 first-time buyers paid the maximum £10,000 (properties priced at exactly £625,000)
Average first-time buyer purchase price was £311,034 nationally in 2024 (Halifax First-Time Buyer Review, February 2025). This is a first-time buyer average and is a different measure from the all-buyer UK HPI average, which was £272,611 across the UK in July 2026
FTB relief is tiered: post-April 2025, 0% on first £300k, 5% on £300k to £500k, no relief above £500k. In 2024-25 (the period covered), the ceiling was £625k
Average first-time buyer age is 33; average deposit is £61,000

The HMRC Data: 36,999 First-Time Buyers Paid Tax

Key Statistics from HMRC Data, 2024-25

• 36,999 first-time buyers paid SDLT despite claiming relief
• Roughly 1 in 4 of all FTB relief claimants paid some tax
• Average stamp duty bill: £4,073
• 13,529 buyers paid £5,000 or more
• 1,285 buyers paid the maximum £10,000

HMRC's Annual Stamp Tax Statistics for 2024 to 2025 record 155,400 first-time buyer relief claims, of which 37,100 were liable to some tax (Table 9a, rounded to the nearest 100). The exact count of 36,999 and the breakdown of bills above come from HMRC data obtained under freedom of information by the money app Plum and reported in February 2026. Together they show that first-time buyer relief does not work as a simple tax-free threshold. It reduces the bill, but for properties above £300,000, it does not eliminate it.

Why Relief Does Not Mean Zero Tax

FTB relief is a tiered reduction, not a cliff-edge exemption. The nil-rate band (currently £300,000 post-April 2025) means the first £300,000 is always tax-free. But the 5% rate applies to any amount between £300,001 and £500,000. And for properties above £500,000, no relief applies at all.

Purchase Price	FTB SDLT (post-April 2025)	Notes
£300,000	£0	Within nil-rate band
£350,000	£2,500	5% on £50,000 above £300k
£400,000	£5,000	5% on £100,000 above £300k
£450,000	£7,500	5% on £150,000 above £300k
£500,000	£10,000	5% on £200,000 above £300k
£510,000	£15,500	No relief: standard rates apply

See the full FTB vs standard rate comparison

Who Paid the Most?

13,529 buyers paid £5,000 or more, meaning that under the 2024-25 rules (nil-rate band £425,000, relief ceiling £625,000) they bought at £525,000 or more. 1,285 buyers paid the maximum £10,000, which under those rules means buying at exactly £625,000.

London and South East

• Average FTB property price: approximately £450,000 (first-time buyer average, 2024-25)
• SDLT at £450k: £7,500
• Only about 11% of homes fall below the £300k FTB threshold
• Most London FTBs pay £2,500 to £10,000 in stamp duty

Rest of England

• Average FTB property price: approximately £250,000 (first-time buyer average, 2024-25)
• SDLT at £250k: £0
• 76% of North East properties fall below the FTB threshold
• Many buyers in northern regions pay nothing at all

The Average First-Time Buyer in 2024-25

Average Age

33 years

Average Deposit

£61,000

Average Property

£311,000

SDLT at £311k

£550

At the national first-time buyer average of about £311,000 (Halifax, calendar year 2024), a first-time buyer buying today pays £550 in stamp duty (5% on the £11,000 above the £300,000 nil-rate band). This is a modest bill, but it adds to already stretched deposit costs. Note that first-time buyer averages run below the all-buyer average in London and above it in much of the north, so they should not be compared directly with the ONS all-buyer figures.

Sources: HMRC Annual Stamp Tax Statistics 2024 to 2025 (Table 9a); HMRC data obtained under freedom of information by Plum, as reported by The Intermediary and This Is Money in February 2026; Halifax First-Time Buyer Review (February 2025, covering 2024). All-buyer comparison figures: UK House Price Index, July 2026.

What Changed in April 2025

Before April 2025 (October 2022 to March 2025), the nil-rate band was £425,000, with 5% applying on the portion between £425,001 and £625,000. Properties above £625,000 received no FTB relief at all.

From April 2025, the nil-rate band dropped to £300,000, with 5% now applying on £300,001 to £500,000.

This means any FTB buying between £300,001 and £425,000 now pays SDLT for the first time. The change caught an estimated 37% more buyers in the tax net compared to the previous rules.

Compare pre and post April 2025 rates

Read the full one-year review