UK monthly property transactions commentary
Updated 30 June 2026
© Crown copyright 2026
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/monthly-property-transactions-completed-in-the-uk-with-value-40000-or-above/uk-monthly-property-transactions-commentary--2
Headline statistics
Headline statistics from the latest transactions data include:
- the provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK
residential transactions in May 2026 is
98,450, 17% higher than
May 2025 and 2% lower
than April 2026
- the provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK
residential transactions in May 2026 is
92,390, 13% higher than
May 2025 and 7% higher than
April 2026
- the provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK
non-residential transactions in May 2026 is
10,080, marginally lower (less than 1%) than
May 2025 and
marginally higher (less than 1%) than
April 2026
- the provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK
non-residential transactions in May 2026 is
9,380, 4% lower than
May 2025 and 5% lower
than April 2026
Executive Summary
Figures for seasonally adjusted residential transactions in May 2026 are 2% lower relative to April 2026, falling from 100,440 to 98,450. Seasonally adjusted transaction figures are 17% higher than in May 2025. This year‑on‑year increase follows a larger year‑on‑year increase seen last month and reflects lower transaction levels in April and May 2025, when activity fell following changes to SDLT thresholds. Transactions were brought forward into March 2025 ahead of the changes, leading to fewer completions in the following months.
Non-seasonally adjusted residential transactions increased by 7% in May 2026 relative to April 2026.
Seasonally adjusted non-residential transactions have seen an increase, with figures for May 2026 marginally higher (less than 1%) relative to April 2026 and marginally lower (less than 1%) than in May 2025.
Non-seasonally adjusted non-residential transactions are 5% lower relative to April 2026.
These statistics represent completions which are on average two to four months after an initial offer is made on a property. They do not necessarily represent the current strength of the property market.
About this release
These 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. National Statistics are accredited official statistics.
These 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 09:30am 30 June 2026 and was updated with provisional data from completed transactions during May 2026. The next release will be published 09:30am 31 July 2026 and will be updated with provisional data from completed transactions during June 2026.
The ‘Monthly property transactions completed in the UK with value of £40,000 or above’ statistical release is Crown Copyright. The information can be used as long as the source is clearly described.
The latest statistics
The latest statistics section provides information on UK residential and non-residential transactions during the previous 3 years. To demonstrate any underlying trends within the data, seasonally adjusted transactions estimates are provided alongside non-seasonally adjusted estimates.
Caution is advised when interpreting estimates for the latest month due to their provisional status. This is because they are based upon incomplete data as not all SDLT, LBTT and LTT returns are received by HMRC, Revenue Scotland and WRA when figures are compiled. We therefore expect statistics to be revised in future months, although transactions figures generally settle after approximately 3 months.
Figure 1: Non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK residential property transactions by month between 2023 and 2026.
Figure 1 demonstrates the following trends for UK residential transactions:
-
provisional figures for seasonally adjusted transactions in May 2026 are 2% lower than April 2026.
-
non-seasonally adjusted transactions increased by 7% in May 2026 relative to April 2026.
Figure 2: Non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK non-residential property transactions by month between 2023 and 2026.
Figure 2 demonstrates the following trends for UK non-residential transactions:
-
seasonally adjusted transaction levels for May 2026 increased by 1% relative to April 2026.
-
non-seasonally adjusted non-residential transactions for May 2026 are 5% lower relative to April 2026.
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 detailed analysis of UK residential transactions. To demonstrate any underlying trends within the data, seasonally adjusted transactions estimates are provided alongside non-seasonally adjusted estimates.
Figure 3: Comparisons of non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK residential transactions in May between 2017 and 2026.
| Month and year | Non-seasonally adjusted | Seasonally adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| May 2017 | 96,490 | 100,620 |
| May 2018 | 95,340 | 100,490 |
| May 2019 | 97,050 | 96,280 |
| May 2020 | 46,160 | 48,480 |
| May 2021 | 102,980 | 115,440 |
| May 2022 | 99,780 | 108,320 |
| May 2023 | 74,030 | 78,540 |
| May 2024 | 92,960 | 93,700 |
| May 2025 | 81,880 | 84,470 |
| May 2026 [provisional estimates] | 92,390 | 98,450 |
Figure 4: Financial year to date (April to May) comparison of UK residential transactions between the 2017 to 2018 and 2026 to 2027 financial years.
| Financial Year | Non-seasonally adjusted | Seasonally adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 to 2018 | 184,460 | 205,410 |
| 2018 to 2019 | 179,780 | 199,550 |
| 2019 to 2020 | 184,910 | 194,660 |
| 2020 to 2021 | 83,510 | 91,460 |
| 2021 to 2022 | 216,780 | 237,600 |
| 2022 to 2023 | 199,290 | 217,840 |
| 2023 to 2024 | 141,900 | 161,150 |
| 2024 to 2025 | 170,740 | 183,170 |
| 2025 to 2026 | 138,840 | 149,890 |
| 2026 to 2027 [provisional estimates] | 178,750 | 198,890 |
Figure 5: Historic non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK residential property transactions by month between 2005 and 2026.
Figure 5 demonstrates the following trends for UK residential transactions:
-
there was a large peak in transactions in March 2025 and a subsequent drop in April 2025 caused by transactions brought forward ahead of the SDLT threshold reductions from 1 April 2025
-
there were large peaks in transactions during March, June, and September 2021 caused by increased numbers of taxpayers taking advantage of temporarily increased nil rate bands of SDLT, LBTT, and LTT
-
there was a substantial decrease in transactions during quarter 2 of 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic
-
there was a large peak in March 2016 caused by increased amounts of taxpayers completing before the introduction of higher rates for additional residential properties from April 2016
-
there was an unseasonal peak in December 2009 caused by the ending of a temporarily increased nil rate band for residential transactions
-
the fall in transactions from late 2007 coincided with the financial crisis, before which transactions had increased steadily before peaking in mid 2006
UK non-residential transactions
Non-residential property includes, but is not limited to:
- commercial property
- agricultural land
- forests
- any other land or property which is not residential
- 6 or more residential properties bought in a single transaction
- mixed use transactions
The following section provides detailed analysis of UK non-residential transactions. To demonstrate any underlying trends within the data, seasonally adjusted transactions estimates are provided alongside non-seasonally adjusted estimates.
Figure 6: Comparisons of non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK non-residential transactions in May between 2017 and 2026.
| Month and year | Non-seasonally adjusted | Seasonally adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| May 2017 | 10,210 | 10,570 |
| May 2018 | 10,060 | 10,510 |
| May 2019 | 10,000 | 10,070 |
| May 2020 | 5,310 | 5,740 |
| May 2021 | 9,360 | 10,460 |
| May 2022 | 10,340 | 11,060 |
| May 2023 | 9,260 | 9,460 |
| May 2024 | 10,460 | 10,460 |
| May 2025 | 9,760 | 10,170 |
| May 2026 [provisional estimates] | 9,380 | 10,080 |
Figure 7: Financial year to date (April to May) comparison of UK non-residential transactions between the 2017 to 2018 and 2026 to 2027 financial years.
| Financial Year | Non-seasonally adjusted | Seasonally adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 to 2018 | 20,020 | 21,250 |
| 2018 to 2019 | 20,230 | 20,990 |
| 2019 to 2020 | 20,380 | 20,380 |
| 2020 to 2021 | 10,750 | 11,190 |
| 2021 to 2022 | 20,200 | 20,970 |
| 2022 to 2023 | 21,120 | 21,830 |
| 2023 to 2024 | 18,480 | 19,430 |
| 2024 to 2025 | 21,030 | 20,850 |
| 2025 to 2026 | 19,670 | 20,010 |
| 2026 to 2027 [provisional estimates] | 19,270 | 20,070 |
Figure 8: Historic non-seasonally adjusted and seasonally adjusted UK non-residential property transactions by month between 2005 and 2026.
Figure 8 demonstrates the following trends for UK non-residential transactions:
- ahead of the Autumn Budget 2024, October 2024 saw the highest
transaction figures since the introduction of these SDLT statistics
in 2005
- impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the quarter 2 of
2020 showing the lowest quarterly total for transactions since the
introduction of these SDLT statistics in 2005
- as with UK residential transactions, the 2007 financial crisis triggered a fall in UK non-residential transactions
Contacts
The ‘Monthly property transactions completed in the UK with value with value of £40,000 or above’ statistical release is produced by the Property Tax Statistics team as part of the ‘Property transactions in the UK’ collection.
Contact stamptaxes.statistics@hmrc.gov.uk for statistical enquiries.
Contact HMRC press office for media enquiries.