Property market bounce after the Budget gloom: Market heats up forward of Boxing Day surge

The housing market is rebounding after getting stuck in the Budget doldrums and is set to enter the new year firing on all cylinders, property experts say. 

Agents say sellers are already putting homes on the market, and the number of deals being done will pick up as buyers use the Christmas period to plan their next move. 

Property website Rightmove today reports a 24 per cent week-on-week spike in the number of top-end London homeowners putting their properties up for sale, as the mansion tax in the Budget affected fewer properties than initially feared. 

Rightmove’s house price index saw new seller asking prices fall by 1.8 per cent in the last month to £358,138, reflecting Budget uncertainty and the usual December drop as viewings halt over Christmas. 

Prices are 0.6 per cent or £2,059 lower at the end of 2025 than in 2024. 

While property deals usually stutter into action in January, the effect is more pronounced this year because people who shelved their plans for fears of tax changes in the Budget are also coming back. 

For sale: Agents are predicting a flurry of property market activity on Boxing Day and beyond

What is happening? 

In the 19 days since the Budget, there has been a notable spike in property market activity – sellers putting homes on the market, buyers going out on viewings and making offers. 

A chunk of these people are those resuming their house search after pausing it on Budget tax rise fears. 

In a survey of 1,700 active property seekers – both buyers and renters – by property website On The Market, 50 per cent said the Budget ended up having no impact on their moving plans, while 6 per cent planned to accelerate them as a result. 

Only 12 per cent had delayed them and 3 per cent cancelled, with the rest unsure. 

Trending down: Asking prices fell at the end of 2025 as Budget uncertainty took hold

Two halves: Property sentiment took a slide in the latter half of the year, Rightmove data shows

Phillip Sandbach, managing director at John German Estate Agents in the Midlands says: ‘Following the Budget, which in the end didn’t significantly impact the majority of the property market, we have seen a marked uptick in activity and a surge in exchanges too.’

A Rightmove survey of 10,000 home hunters conducted pre-Budget found nearly one in five were waiting for the outcome of the Budget to resume their moving plans, so this represents a significant cohort who will potentially now return – if not now, then when websites are hit with a flurry of listings after Christmas Day. 

‘It’s likely that many of this group will be re-engaged by the number of new listings that are being held back ready for launch on or soon after Boxing Day,’ Rightmove says. 

It is predicting a ‘bigger-than-usual Boxing Day bounce’ on its website – referring to the annual phenomenon when families browse homes in the down-time between Christmas and New Year.

Barney Coles, director at estate agent Artistry Property, is also anticipating a January flurry of activity. 

‘Since the Budget, we’ve received a number of instructions from clients who’d put plans on hold, and we’ve also noticed a definite uptick in enquiries and viewings from people interested in the type of unique and exclusive homes that we specialise in.

‘With this pent-up demand adding to the normal increase in activity once the Christmas break is over, we expect to be busy in January. All things considered, we’re looking forward to 2026.’

This is being helped by falling mortgage rates which are giving people the confidence to borrow more and encouraging first-time buyers and those trading up the ladder. 

An anticipated interest rate cut from 4 per cent to 3.75 per cent when the Bank of England meets on 18 December should add to the positive sentiment. 

The higher-end property market is seeing a particular uptick, as these people were most likely to stall plans around the Budget. 

Dominic Agace, chief executive of estate agent Winkworth, told This is Money: ‘The market ground to a halt in November, but it feels freer now. 

‘Quite a few things have been brought to market since, and they’ve performed solidly well. There are lots being prepared for January, and lots looking to launch on Boxing Day. 

‘Particularly on more expensive homes, where sellers were previously holding off, they are being brought to the market and getting interest.’ 

What will happen to house prices? 

While property experts expect a bump in transactions, they say we we shouldn’t expect big price rises. 

Rightmove forecasts that new seller asking prices will increase by 2 per cent over the course of the year. 

However, with homes on the market still set to be greater than the number of buyers, agents warn that sellers must still price their homes sensibly. 

Jordan Halstead, CEO at Jordan & Halstead estate agents in Chester says: ‘Properly-priced homes are still selling, the ones that have struggled have been the over-optimistic instructions. 

‘Buyers will pay fair value; they just won’t chase fantasy prices.’

Many buyers and sellers will also be returning to the market with the hope of doing a quick deal. 

This could include those who have had a child and need more space, wanted to downsize, or have had an expensive mortgage rate hike they can ill afford – but had begrudgingly stayed put during the Budget speculation. 

These sellers may prioritise getting the deal done over getting the best price.  

Winkworth’s Agace says: ‘There are lots of needs-based buyers and sellers – people who need to downsize, and who are coming off cheap fixed mortgages. 

‘There is a sensitive balance between buyers and sellers at the moment. I think transactions will increase, but prices will be flat.’ 

There has been recent concern over prices in London, where more people will be affected by Labour’s extra stamp duty surcharge on £2million-plus homes. 

However, On the Market’s survey found that would-be buyers in London ‘largely shared the same sentiment as the rest of the country’ over the Budget, suggesting it may not be disproportionately affected. 

In the survey, only 2 per cent of respondents cited the surcharge as the reason for cancelling their property plans.

Rightmove’s latest data showed prices in London fell by 1.2 per cent in the last month, but are flat compared to December 2024. 

Other regions performed more poorly, such as the North East which saw a 5.1 per cent monthly drop and was down 0.8 per cent on the year.