Buying a property in the UK
The rate, the process, the taxes, the checks. Four minutes, no padding.
Bank Rate · How a purchase works · Tax · Things to check
Bank of England base rate
3.75%
since 2025-12-18
- Mortgage rates follow it. Lenders price fixed and tracker deals off this number.
- Lower rate, cheaper deals. Higher rate, dearer deals, and less you can afford to borrow.
Every change, as a table
| Changed | New rate |
|---|---|
| 2025-12-18 | 3.75% |
| 2025-08-07 | 4.00% |
| 2025-05-08 | 4.25% |
| 2025-02-06 | 4.50% |
| 2024-11-07 | 4.75% |
| 2024-08-01 | 5.00% |
| 2023-08-03 | 5.25% |
| 2023-06-22 | 5.00% |
| 2023-05-11 | 4.50% |
| 2023-03-23 | 4.25% |
| 2023-02-02 | 4.00% |
| 2022-12-15 | 3.50% |
| 2022-11-03 | 3.00% |
| 2022-09-22 | 2.25% |
| 2022-08-04 | 1.75% |
| 2022-06-16 | 1.25% |
| 2022-05-05 | 1.00% |
| 2022-03-17 | 0.75% |
| 2022-02-03 | 0.50% |
| 2021-12-16 | 0.25% |
| 2020-03-19 | 0.10% |
| 2020-03-11 | 0.25% |
| 2018-08-02 | 0.75% |
| 2017-11-02 | 0.50% |
| 2016-08-30 | 0.25% |
Source: Bank of England Interactive Statistical Database (series IUDBEDR).
How a UK property purchase works
- Get an Agreement in Principle first. Agents won't take an offer seriously without one. Budget for Stamp Duty, solicitor, survey, lender fees and removals on top of the price.
- Make an offer. Not binding until exchange (step 5) in England, Wales and NI, so either side can walk away until then. Scotland binds much earlier, once missives conclude.
- Instruct a solicitor. Book a survey. The lender's valuation is not a survey and won't flag defects. Which survey level is below.
- Apply for the formal mortgage offer. Only possible once there's a specific property and an agreed price.
- Searches, then exchange. Local authority, drainage and environmental searches (a report on this site covers much of this for free, first). Exchange is the point of no return: deposit paid, completion date fixed.
- Completion. Balance paid, keys handed over. Days to weeks after exchange, by agreement.
- After completion. Your solicitor files the Stamp Duty return and registers you with Land Registry. Check it's in their fee.
Tax on buying and owning property
Stamp Duty (or equivalent)
- One-off, paid on completion. SDLT in England and NI, LTT in Wales, LBTT in Scotland.
- Banded, not flat. Each rate applies only to the slice of the price inside its band. First-time buyers and additional properties have their own bands.
- Bands change at budgets. The calculator on any property report here is kept current and does the maths.
Capital Gains Tax
- Only when you sell, only on the gain. Second homes and buy-to-lets. Your main home is normally exempt.
- Rates and allowance move. Current figures: gov.uk.
Council Tax
- Annual, set by band. A to H in England and Scotland, Wales has its own. Based on a 1991 valuation (2003 in Wales), not today's price.
- Look up any address free at gov.uk/council-tax-bands. It isn't open data, so reports here don't show it.
Things to check before you commit
- Lease under 80 years is a problem. Expensive to extend, hard to mortgage. Check years left, ground rent and service charge before offering.
- Pick the survey level. Level 1 for newer and sound. Level 2 is the usual choice. Level 3 for older, larger or altered homes.
- Run the free report first. Flood, subsidence, radon, contamination, mining, planning, sold prices, EPC, crime and schools, before you pay anyone.
- Chain-free is safer. New build, probate, or a seller who has already moved. Chains are why purchases collapse.
- Book solicitor and surveyor before the offer. Prices vary a lot. Being ready shortens everything after.