Analysis from Hamptons showed that in 2025, 14.8% of Londoners sold their home for less than they had purchased it for. This was above the national average of 8.7% of homeowners selling at a loss.
For nine of the last 10 years, this was most likely to happen to sellers in the North East.
In 2019, 29.9% of sellers in the North East sold for less than they paid, compared to 9.2% in London. Hamptons said this reflected the region’s slow recovery from the 2008 global financial crash.
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|
2019 |
2025 |
|
|
London |
9.2% |
14.8% |
|
North East |
29.9% |
13.9% |
|
South East |
7.3% |
9% |
|
South West |
8.8% |
8.3% |
|
North West |
15.4% |
8.1% |
|
Yorkshire and the Humber |
14.5% |
8% |
|
East of England |
5.7% |
7.9% |
|
West Midlands |
8.9% |
6.9% |
|
East Midlands |
7.6% |
6.7% |
|
Wales |
12.2% |
6.2% |
|
England and Wales |
10% |
8.7% |
Flat sellers lead loss-making sales
Over the decade, the share of loss-making sales has more than halved from 29.9% in 2019 to 17.7% in 2024, then just 13.9% last year. By contrast, this has been rising in London, and the trend has been largely due to owners of flats, who made up 60% of sales in the capital last year.
Flats accounted for 90% of the homes sold at a loss in the capital, up from 78.4% in 2019.
In 2025, the average London seller made a gain of £172,510 on the sale of their home, a 44.6% increase on the paid price. Most of this was due to historical house price growth, as more than half of the sellers in London last year had owned their home for more than a decade. In cash terms, these long-term homeowners accounted for 77% of the gains made in London.
House owners made larger returns than flat owners, with average gains of 59.6% over 10.3 years, while average gains for flat owners were around 35.4% over 10.1 years.
Flat owners were six times more likely to make a loss compared to house owners, and Hamptons said this made it harder for flat owners to step up the ladder and buy a house.
|
2024 sellers |
2025 sellers |
YoY change |
|
|
London |
£172,350 |
£172,510 |
£160 |
|
South East |
£116,560 |
£108,030 |
-£8,530 |
|
South West |
£96,090 |
£91,890 |
-£4,200 |
|
East |
£100,270 |
£97,130 |
-£3,140 |
|
East Midlands |
£71,530 |
£70,730 |
-£800 |
|
West Midlands |
£72,980 |
£76,220 |
£3,240 |
|
North East |
£38,220 |
£41,140 |
£2,920 |
|
North West |
£64,830 |
£70,520 |
£5,690 |
|
Yorkshire and the Humber |
£60,380 |
£62,180 |
£1,800 |
|
Wales |
£66,710 |
£68,120 |
£1,410 |
|
England and Wales |
£91,830 |
£91,260 |
-£570 |
The North benefits from house price gains
Hamptons found that sustained house price growth in the North over the last decade meant sellers in those regions saw proportionally higher gains than homeowners in the South.
Last year, the average seller in the North West made a gain of 45.4% on the value of their home, compared to 44.6% in London, 38.3% in the South East, 39.5% in the South West and 39.5% in the East of England.
London was the only Southern region with average gains above 40%.
Sellers in the Midlands and North of England are now among the least likely to make a loss when selling.
Nationally, gains made by sellers in 2025 were similar to levels seen in 2024. Last year, the average home in England and Wales sold for £91,260 or 41% more than they paid nine years ago on average. This was just £570 less than the average gain of £91,830 in 2024.
The losses made by sellers in 2025 were 8.7%, similar to 8.8% in 2024.
However, Hamptons said the figures covered the gaps across property types, as 19.9% of flat sellers made a loss compared to 4.5% of house owners, down from 5.7% in 2024.
| Average seller gain | Average seller gain | Average length of ownership | Share of sellers who made a gain | |
| 2015 | £82,730 | 59% | 8.8 | 86% |
| 2016 | £87,560 | 60% | 8.8 | 89% |
| 2017 | £88,230 | 58% | 8.8 | 90% |
| 2018 | £88,030 | 54% | 8.9 | 90% |
| 2019 | £80,970 | 49% | 8.9 | 89% |
| 2020 | £84,880 | 45% | 8.8 | 90% |
| 2021 | £96,220 | 47% | 8.9 | 92% |
| 2022 | £112,930 | 54% | 9 | 94% |
| 2023 | £102,650 | 48% | 8.9 | 93% |
| 2024 | £91,830 | 42% | 8.9 | 91% |
| 2025 | £91,260 | 41% | 9 | 91% |
London homes are no longer a safe bet
Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, said: “In London, upward house price growth is no longer the one-way bet it once seemed. In some cases, even owners who bought a decade ago still face getting back less than they paid – something that would have been almost unthinkable in the heady days of 2015. And for many, the sums are likely to remain tight.
“Over the next few years, more sellers are likely to have missed out on London’s 2012-16 house price boom, having bought instead at what turned out to be the top of the market. That could make trading up increasingly challenging.”
She added: “Nationally, rising gains in the North have helped offset shrinking returns in the South, leaving the overall picture broadly unchanged from last year. And with much of the recent price growth in the North and Midlands now baked in, it’s possible that seller gains there could outpace those in the South – in both cash and percentage terms – for the foreseeable future.
“The recent slowdown in house price growth nationally is likely to reduce the uplift homeowners achieve when they come to sell in the coming years. But for many, moving remains a discretionary decision, heavily influenced by the value they can achieve. If the numbers don’t stack up – and sellers risk losing part of their original deposit – many choose to stay put. This means some homeowners, particularly those unable to secure a gain, are likely to remain out of the market.”
