HMRC said this large increase was driven by comparatively low transaction levels in April 2025, when activity plummeted after the stamp duty thresholds changed. Also, many transactions were brought forward to March so people could benefit from the lower thresholds.
Compared to March this year, residential property transactions fell 3% from 103,910.
On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, HRMC estimated there were 85,880 residential transactions in April across the UK, 51% higher than last year and 16% down on the month before.
A steady market before the Middle East conflict
Richard Pike, sales and marketing director at Phoebus Software, said the figures reflected decisions made when the market was stronger and before the impact of the conflict in the Middle East.
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However, he said the figures showed the underlying market “remains resilient”.
Pike added: “There are early signs that affordability pressures are beginning to ease as economic conditions stabilise, which should help support a gradual pick-up in activity as we move into the summer months.
“That said, the outlook remains finely balanced. Lenders will need to stay alert to emerging risks, ensuring they have robust servicing and monitoring capabilities in place to identify signs of stress early and support customers effectively if arrears begin to rise.”
Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark, said while it was “disappointing” to see a monthly fall in non-seasonally adjusted housing transactions, “when viewing the wider picture year-on-year, they show a return to more expected numbers, all following changes to thresholds to stamp duty at the start of April 2025”.
Emerson said: “Sentiment within the housing sector remains a central indicator of economic health. With global unease continuing to add potential unforeseen pressures for many people, it is important to apply a sense of caution regarding affordability over the coming weeks and months.
“We have recently witnessed Ofgem raise the energy price cap by 13%, effective from July. This, coupled with what is a generally changeable direction for both inflation and base rate, could add up to producing a challenging period ahead.”
Ryan McGrath, director of second charge mortgages at Pepper Money, said a year-on-year decline was always likely and should be viewed in the context of “an unusually distorted comparison”.
“The more meaningful signal is in the month-on-month trend, which suggests the market is proving relatively resilient and activity levels are holding broadly steady,” McGrath said.
He added: “The broader environment through April was mixed. The Bank of England held rates at 3.75% for a second consecutive meeting, with several market analysts signalling there could be rate hikes if energy prices continue to feed through to inflation. Some lenders did begin cutting mortgage rates as market volatility eased following the ceasefire announced in early April, which will have offered a degree of relief, but the average two-year fixed deal still sits meaningfully higher than it did at the start of the year.
“For many homeowners, the numbers simply don’t stack up in favour of moving.”
