Foxtons sees sales under offer surge to nine-year high

28 January 2025, 13:04

The Wapping branch of the estate agents Foxtons in east London
Foxtons financials. Picture: PA

The London-based estate agency said it had seen a rush in demand from first-time buyers ahead of stamp duty changes on April 1.

Estate agency Foxtons has seen the number of London properties under offer surge to its highest level since the Brexit vote as first-time buyers rush to complete ahead of stamp duty changes.

The London-based chain said its pipeline of under-offer sales started 2025 “significantly” higher than a year earlier and at its highest since 2016, which it hopes will “underpin” overall revenue growth in the first quarter.

“The growth in the under-offer pipeline is partly driven by first-time buyer activity ahead of increased stamp duty rates from April 2025, which may result in some buyer activity being accelerated into the first quarter of 2025 ahead of the deadline,” Foxtons said.

The rush in sales comes ahead of changes to stamp duty that were announced in the Budget, which will see first-time buyer discounts become less generous.

We start the year with the highest opening under-offer pipeline since the Brexit vote in 2016

Guy Gittins, Foxtons chief executive

From April 1, the “nil rate” stamp duty threshold for first-time buyers will decrease from £425,000 to £300,000.

The wider nil rate threshold will also drop across the board for residential property purchases, from £250,000 down to £125,000.

Foxtons added that the sales business was “well positioned” to return to profitability this year, if the upbeat market conditions continue.

“Early data indicates new buyer activity in 2025 remains above prior year levels, despite recent uncertainty on the interest rate outlook and consumer confidence,” the group said.

But it cautioned that buyer demand would be sensitive to the “speed and extent of future interest rate reductions, with faster interest rate cuts providing an opportunity for accelerated growth”.

£300,000
The stamp duty 'nil rate' threshold for first time buyers from April 1

Overall, the firm saw revenues jump 11% to around £163 million in 2024, with underlying earnings up by about a third to £19 million, both of which it said were better than expected.

Sales revenues grew by about 30% over the year, as a 10% rebound in transactions by volume offset broadly flat prices.

Lettings sales lifted about 5%, with 11% growth quarter-on-quarter in the final three months, it added.

Guy Gittins, chief executive of Foxtons, said: “We enter 2025 with optimism.

“We expect the lettings business to remain resilient and, in sales, we start the year with the highest opening under-offer pipeline since the Brexit vote in 2016.”

By Press Association