UK National statistics
UK monthly property transactions statistics notes
The extension of temporarily increased nil rate bands of Stamp Duty Land Tax and Land Transaction Tax following Budget 2021 caused transaction levels for these taxes to be historically high in April 2021.
Year on year comparisons for UK residential transactions should be treated with caution as significant volatility including forestalling was observed in 2021.
Year on year comparisons for UK residential transactions should be treated with caution as significant volatility including forestalling was observed in 2021.
Forestalling is when advanced action is taken to prevent an anticipated event. These statistics relate to taxpayers completing property transactions earlier to take advantage of government policies.
Temporary increases to nil rate bands for residential property taxes and the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have all produced significant uncertainties underlying seasonal trends since around April 2020. Seasonally adjusted statistics should therefore be treated with additional caution.
Headline statistics
The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of UK residential transactions in April 2022 is 97,970, 13.9% lower than April 2021 and 10.5% lower than March 2022.
The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of UK non-residential transactions in April 2022 is 10,050, 7.0% lower than April 2021 and 16.7% lower than March 2022.
The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of UK residential transactions in April 2022 is 106,780, 12.1% lower than April 2021 and 3.9% lower than March 2022.
The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of UK residential transactions in April 2022 is 106,780, 12.1% lower than April 2021 and 3.9% lower than March 2022.
About this release
This HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) National Statistics provide monthly provisional estimates of residential and non-residential property transactions in the UK and its constituent countries.
Statistics are based upon records by HMRC, Revenue Scotland and the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) for Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) and Land Transaction Tax (LTT) respectively.
The latest release was published 09:30 24 May 2022 and was updated with provisional data from completed transactions during April 2022. The next release will be published at 09:30 on 21 June 2022 and will be updated with provisional data from completed transactions during May 2022.
Coronavirus (COVID-19)
During their initial response to the coronavirus pandemic, the UK government introduced a UK wide lockdown including restrictions on the property market from 23 March 2020. During the summer of 2020, restrictions (including those for the property market) were gradually removed.
Following this first UK wide lockdown, the UK government and devolved governments in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland introduced several more regional and national lockdowns during 2020, 2021, and the beginning of 2022. Coronavirus restrictions impacting housing markets have since been removed within all 4 UK nations.
Users of this statistical release should be aware that impacts from the coronavirus pandemic were captured within transactions figures from approximately April 2020.
The latest statistics
The latest statistics section provides the UK residential and non-residential transaction estimates during the previous 3 years. To demonstrate any underlying trends within the data, seasonally adjusted transaction estimates are also provided alongside non-seasonally adjusted transaction estimates.
Caution is advised when interpreting the latest estimates due to their provisional status. Estimates for the latest month are based upon incomplete data as not all SDLT, LBTT and LTT returns from completed transactions during that month will have been received by HMRC, Revenue Scotland and WRA respectively when figures are compiled.
We, therefore, expect statistics to be revised in future months, although transaction figures generally settle after approximately 3 months.
Figure 1: Non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK residential property transactions by month between April 2019 and April 2022, in thousand transactions.
The non-seasonally adjusted estimate of UK residential transactions in April 2022 has decreased 13.9% compared to last year. However, year on year comparisons should be treated with caution as significant volatility including forestalling was observed in 2021.
Figure 1 also includes the very large drop during April 2020, as the UK housing market was locked down from 23 March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. This resulted in transactions falling by over 55% compared to April 2019.
After April 2020, UK residential transactions gradually returned to historical levels, alongside large peaks in March, June, and September 2021 caused by forestalling relating to temporarily increased nil rate bands of SDLT, LBTT, and LTT.
The provisional estimate of 10,050 for non-seasonally adjusted UK non-residential transactions in April 2022 is similar to levels reported before the coronavirus pandemic.
The following year on year decreases in April and May 2020 of around 45% were caused by economic impacts relating to the coronavirus pandemic, and non-residential transactions followed a generally increasing until March 2021 before plateauing at an average of around 10,300 transactions per month.
UK residential transactions
Residential property refers to buildings used or suitable for use as a dwelling, or in the process of being constructed for use as a dwelling. It also includes the gardens and grounds of dwellings. Go to HMRC Stamp Duty Land Tax Manual for more definitions of residential and non-residential properties.
The following section provides a detailed analysis of UK residential transactions. To demonstrate any underlying trends within the data, seasonally adjusted transaction estimates are also provided alongside non-seasonally adjusted transaction estimates.
Source: UK Government
