Today’s UK HMRC property transaction data showed a less than 1% fall in property transactions in December as the market remains cautious and buyers take time to respond to improving conditions.
Some of the sectors’ most trusted names have shared their reaction to the data:
Nathan Emerson, CEO at Propertymark, comments:
“Based on December 2025’s figures, it is encouraging to see that property transactions remained stable following the Autumn Budget. At a time when many households were concerned about rising living costs, this stability suggests that the Budget provided enough clarity for people to continue progressing with plans to buy or sell a home.
The UK Government has announced a range of measures designed to strengthen the housing market, including reforms to protect leaseholders from unfair ground rents and investment to increase the supply of homes through new development and social housing. These longer-term policies should help improve affordability and choice for consumers across England.
That said, many buyers are still feeling the strain of higher borrowing costs. To ease wider cost-of-living pressures and encourage more market activity, inflation and interest rates will need to fall. This would help make mortgages more affordable and support greater confidence among those looking to move home.”
Maria Harris, chair of the Open Property Data Association (OPDA), shares her thoughts on HMRC’s Property Transaction data for December:
“Property transactions remained constant in December, and I’m confident that we’ll see a steady increase in 2026 as affordability improves and more people look to move home.
However, it’s consistently acknowledged that the experience of buying and selling a home just isn’t where we need it to be.
There were more than 1.2million residential property transactions last year, according to HMRC data. But thousands of house sales fell through because of the outdated and inefficient systems we have in place.
Data published in The Times this week shows the percentage of property sales collapsing increased last year, from 23.3 per cent in 2024 to 23.8 per cent in 2025. This compares with 21.9 per cent of deals collapsing at the height of the low-rate mortgage period before Covid in 2019.
This is a worrying trend in the market, causing heartache and stress for sellers and costing the UK economy millions each year. We need to transform the process, based on a common, trusted foundation for data sharing.
Digital Sales Ready listings and upfront information have the potential to transform the home buying and selling journey, creating faster, more transparent transactions with fewer delays and fall-throughs. By sharing more information upfront, it creates more certainty for all parties and reduces the risk of sales collapsing further down the line.
The OPDA’s Property Data Trust Framework gives lenders, brokers and conveyancers a shared language and rulebook for smart property data, but we need everyone in the industry driving change and adopting new ways of working to implement a system that works better for everyone.”
Karen Noye, mortgage expert at Quilter, comments:
“Residential transactions remain broadly stable, with 100,440 seasonally adjusted sales in December, virtually unchanged from November and 5% higher than a year earlier.
The fact that volumes have settled rather than slumped suggests the market has adjusted to the new tax and interest rate landscape and found a more natural level after a year of higher stamp duty and mortgage prices.
With mortgage rates easing slightly and the prospect of further base rate cuts this year, there is potential for transaction levels to edge higher if borrowing costs continue to improve. However, affordability remains stretched compared to the ultra-low rate era, so any recovery is likely to be gradual rather than dramatic.
For buyers and sellers, this is a more balanced market. There is very little urgency in the market at the moment, and the direction of interest rates will likely be the key driver of confidence over the coming year.”
Richard Sexton, commercial director of proptech surveyor portal Houzecheck, said:
“A slightly softer set of transactions doesn’t mean demand has disappeared; it means buyers are hesitating. Buyers are being cautious and considered, not absent and afraid.
When uncertainty creeps in, buyers apply the brake to the process, and that’s where proptech has a real role to play. Reducing friction, speeding up early-stage checks and helping people ease off the brake with confidence when ready.
While activity for this quarter may be slower than some would like, there is a lot of latent demand in the market. Once confidence returns this pause could quickly turn into a surge, and the year ahead could see a much busier time for both buyers and sellers.”
Richard Pike, chief sales and marketing officer at Phoebus Software, shares his reaction to the Bank of England’s Money and Credit data for December:
“The latest Money and Credit figures from the Bank of England showed mortgage borrowing in December remained flat compared to the previous month. There were a number of factors in play – while the base rate reduction and falling mortgage rates stimulated competition, the housing market tends to slow down in the run-up to Christmas.
This could explain why net mortgage approvals for house purchase fell, while approvals for remortgaging rose for a second month.
With falling rates and improving affordability, I’m optimistic that we’ll see mortgage approvals steadily rising in the coming months.”
Ryan McGrath, Director of Second Charge Mortgages at Pepper Money, comments:
“It’s important to note that these figures don’t yet reflect the pause in activity ahead of the November Budget, due to the current lag between agreed sales and recorded completions.
What they do show, however, is underlying resilience. The uptick in transactions came before the full benefit of recent rate improvements had filtered through, and with inflation easing and mortgage pricing continuing to soften, the direction of travel is becoming clearer, giving households greater certainty as we move into 2026.
However, improving market conditions doesn’t automatically mean more people are choosing to move. The ‘improving versus moving’ trend remains a defining feature, with many homeowners still anchored to historically low fixed-rate mortgages. Refinancing their entire balance at today’s rates is often a step too far financially.
As a result, demand remains strong among borrowers looking to improve their homes or rebalance their finances rather than relocate. In the right circumstances, second charge mortgages play a key role, allowing customers to unlock equity for renovations or consolidate existing debts, while keeping their main mortgage rate untouched.”
Hamza Behzad, Business Development Director at Finova, says:
“Today’s figures suggest the housing market remains cautious rather than stalling, with buyers still taking time to respond to improving conditions. While mortgage product availability is at its highest level in 18 years, many households are clearly still weighing up their next move.”
Mortgage rates are lower than a year ago, which is helping to rebuild confidence, but this is shaping up to be a slow and measured recovery rather than a rapid rebound. Most forecasts continue to point to low single-digit house price growth in 2026, as buyers remain price-sensitive after a prolonged period of economic and political uncertainty.
As large numbers of borrowers reach the end of fixed-rate deals this year, competition among lenders is intensifying, improving pricing and choice. With further rate cuts still expected, the foundations for stronger activity are being laid, even if many buyers are choosing to wait for clearer signals before committing.”
Melanie Spencer, growth director at Target Group, said:
“A significant drop in mortgage approvals in December shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, particularly when you factor in the usual seasonal lull, along with a very late Budget. This created a pent-up demand, which is already starting to work its way through as many parts of the market report a positive start to 2026. Transactions remained pretty stable in December, showing that while many had put their plans on ice in the run-up to the Budget, there were those still making moves – likely out of a need rather than a want.
“Likely buoyed by the base rate cut in December and predictions of both two more cuts and improving inflation, lenders have been very active in this early part of the year. While some affordability and deposit pressures remain, the lending landscape is in good health with high levels of product choice – particularly in high LTV brackets. Lenders will continue to fill their pipeline for the coming year and look to meet their own lending targets and ambitions for market share. It comes as reports suggest that affordability is on course to return to more manageable levels. It means that barring any economic or geopolitical shock – which is an increasing threat in the current climate – we should be in store for a really positive year.
Given the current factors in play at home and abroad – along with increasing choice at the higher end of the mortgage market – there’s no doubt that lenders need to stay vigilant. Not only does it place greater importance on efficient, scalable and tech-enabled solutions and processes, but it places fresh emphasis on servicing and ensuring that lenders have the right capabilities in place – either in-house through digital transformation or outsourced to the right partners.”
Nick Leeming, Chairman of Jackson-Stops, comments:
“December’s HMRC data will largely reflect deals agreed before the November Budget. The figures are completion-based, so December’s data principally reflects transactions agreed in late summer or early autumn, rather than current market activity.
“Beneath the surface, buyer interest was strong in December 2025. Our branch data shows new applicant registrations up on the previous year, with some locations, particularly coastal markets, seeing numbers double. There was also a clear urgency to get deals agreed, suggesting buyers saw prime regional markets as good value and wanted to secure property at current prices.
Looking ahead, buyer demand appears on course to return towards 2024 levels, supported by declining average mortgage rates and a more predictable borrowing environment. Buyers remain selective and value-driven – accurate pricing will be crucial in 2026. Well-priced homes attract strong interest, while over-ambitious pricing risks slowing a sale. Overall, the market is set for a modest, sustainable uplift, underpinned by improving demand, realistic pricing and available stock.”
