- Zoopla says first-time buyers bought nearly 40% of homes for sale
House sales were their highest in three years in 2025, helped by a surge in appetite from first-time buyers.
Those getting on the ladder for the first time were responsible for almost 39 per cent of transactions, the property website Zoopla said, up from 35 per cent the year before and above the 25-year average.
They took share from existing homeowners buying in cash, whose numbers dropped from 24 per cent to 21 per cent, and from landlords who dropped 8 per cent to 7 per cent.
Existing homeowners with mortgages made up 33 per cent of the market in both years.
Overall, prices went up by 1.1 per cent across the country, less than the 1.9 per cent recorded in 2024. On a monthly basis, they rose 0.04 per cent.
Zoopla said the Budget had hit sentiment in the latter part of 2024, saying demand fell by 12 per cent in the four weeks to the end of November and new sales fell 9 per cent.
On the ladder: First-time buyers were particularly active in 2025, Zoopla said
It added that the Budget couldn’t be factored into this year’s transaction numbers as house sales take several months to complete and therefore show up in the data.
Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: ‘2025 has been a strong year for home moves but the Budget hit activity in the final months of the year and saw many moving decisions put on hold.
‘Now the uncertainty has lifted, we expect a stronger than usual start to 2026 as buyers return to the market.
‘The appetite to move home remains strong but affordability remains a constraint for those buying their first home or looking to trade-up to a larger home which will keep prices in check.’
Cheaper mortgages were a major driver of the first-time buyer resurgence this according to Zoopla, which said it expected them to be the largest group of buyers again in 2026.
Average rates have fallen by more than half a per cent since the start of 2025, with the typical two-year fix going from 5.52 per cent in January 2025 to 4.93 per cent today.
The cheapest rates on a 10 per cent deposit loan today are about 4 per cent.
Polly Ogden Duffy, managing director at John D Wood & Co estate agents, said: ‘First-time buyers drive every part of the property market.
‘When they kick-start activity at the entry level, it creates momentum throughout the entire system, allowing chains to form and transactions to progress across the country.
‘With a continued shortage of rental homes pushing rents to record highs, buying is increasingly the more affordable option for many households – provided they can pass affordability checks and secure a mortgage.
‘That’s why the recent easing of affordability criteria is such a positive step.’
Overall, total property sales across all buyer types are on track to reach 1.2million by the end of 2025, 9 per cent higher than the previous year.
The total value of homes sold in 2025 was £367billion, the highest since 2022.
Zoopla said the number of sales had been growing steadily over the past two years because buyers had become accustomed to higher mortgage rates following shock spike after 2022’s mini-Budget.
It also pointed to faster growth in household incomes, and the fact estate agents had the highest numbers of homes on their books for seven years – though the figures imply a significant number did not sell.
What will happen to house prices?
The property portal said it was expecting a ‘stronger than usual’ start to 2026 as buyers returned to the market following Budget tax nerves.
This sentiment has been echoed by property agents, who 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 also reported a 24 per cent spike in the number of top-end London homeowners putting their properties up for sale in the week following the 26 November Budget, as the mansion tax in the Budget affected fewer properties than initially feared.
However, Zoopla expects the number of overall sales to dip slightly next year to about 1.18million.
Will the number of property sales is set to rise at the start of next year, the same is not being said for prices – at least, not to the degree that homeowners have historically been used to.
Zoopla forecasts prices will rise 1.5 per cent in 2026, then by an average of 2.1 per cent across 2027 to 2029.
Zoopla’s Donnell added: ‘It is important that sellers remain realistic on pricing to secure sales in 2026, especially across southern England.
‘Homeowners looking to move in the year ahead should understand the value of their home and what they can afford before starting their property search.’
Where are the house price hotspots?
This year, house price rises – or falls – varied across the country, with Northern Ireland seeing the highest at 6.7 per cent.
Zoopla said prices were ‘rising off a low base’ thanks to a ‘more settled economic and political backdrop.’
London saw the lowest growth as prices fell by 0.6 per cent. The south west and south east were also in the red.
On a city level, Bournemouth experienced the biggest annual price fall at 2.2 per cent and prices also fell 1.1 per cent in both Cambridge and Aberdeen.
Belfast, on the other hand, saw prices soar by 7.2 per cent, followed by Liverpool at 3.6 per cent and Glasgow at 3 per cent.
Top risers: Northern Ireland saw prices go up by 6.7% in the year to the end of November