By city
Stamp duty in Brighton and Hove
A seaside city with London prices: first-time buyers pay tax here, and second-home buyers pay a great deal more.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Brighton and Hove homes sold for £408,948 on average in July 2026, on the UK House Price Index, which makes £10,447 of Stamp Duty Land Tax for a buyer who will own only that home. First-time buyers paid £343,929 on average, above the £300,000 nil band of the relief, so the typical first purchase costs £2,196. Home movers paid £499,622, almost exactly £500,000, and pay £14,981. A buyer who keeps a home elsewhere, in London or abroad, faces a very different bill: the 5% surcharge brings the tax on the average home to £30,894. A buyer who also lives abroad adds another £8,179 at that price, payable to HMRC together with the rest of the tax within 14 days of completion.
More options: commercial property, company relief
Stamp Duty Land Tax · England and Northern Ireland
£10,447
2.6% of £408,948 · rule applied: Standard residential rates
| Portion | Rate | Tax |
|---|---|---|
| £0 to £125,000 | 0% | £0 |
| £125,000 to £250,000 | 2% | £2,500 |
| £250,000 to £925,000 | 5% | £7,947 |
Return and payment due within 14 days of completion.
Same purchase elsewhere in the UK
Three typical Brighton purchases
| Purchase | SDLT | Share of the price |
|---|---|---|
| First-time buyer at the city average (£343,929) | £2,196 | 0.6% |
| Mover at the city average (£499,622) | £14,981 | 3% |
| Second home at the overall average (£408,948) | £30,894 | 7.6% |
The first line shows a relief that still works but no longer makes a first home free. The second sits on the £500,000 line, which matters only for first-time buyers. The third shows how much a second home costs in tax: more than 3.0 times the bill of an owner-occupier at the same price.
Homes by type
| Home | Average price | First-time buyer | One home | Additional property |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flat or maisonette | £295,683 | £0 | £4,784 | £19,568 |
| Terraced house | £475,728 | £8,786 | £13,786 | £37,572 |
| Semi-detached house | £549,795 | £17,489 | £17,489 | £44,979 |
| Detached house | £858,475 | £32,923 | £32,923 | £75,847 |
| All sales | £408,948 | £5,447 | £10,447 | £30,894 |
A Brighton terrace averages £475,728 and a semi £549,795. Both are well into the 5% band, where each £10,000 of price costs £500 in tax. Prices moved -1.1% over the year to July 2026.
Second homes and buyers from abroad
Whether a flat in Brighton is a second home depends on the end of completion day, not on how you use it. If you keep a home anywhere in the world, including abroad, the higher rates apply. If you also spent fewer than 183 days in the UK in the year before completion, the 2% non-resident surcharge is added on top; spouses living with a UK-resident partner are treated as resident. Both rules are explained on the second home and non-resident pages.