The 2025 sales market is off to a "stronger start" than in 2023 and 2024, Zoopla has stated.

The firm’s latest house price index revealed that the average house price in the UK stood at £267,700 in December, which is a 2% year-on-year increase.

New figures showed that buyer demand increased by 13% in the same period, while the number of homes for sales jumped by 10% and sales agreed by 12%.

Zoopla said this demand was a result of the increase in stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland from April 2025, which was announced in the Autumn Budget for both existing owners and first-time buyers (FTBs).

FTB demand jumped by over a third in November and December 2024 in the price bands where stamp duty for FTBs will increase the most, between £300,000 and £625,000.

Executive director of research at Zoopla, Richard Donnell, said: "Buyer demand increased more slowly for homes below £300,000, where FTBs will continue to pay no stamp duty, and for homes over £625,000, where there remains no tax relief for FTBs.

"It is now too late for buyers to agree and complete on a property purchase before the end of March 2025 in order to pay lower stamp duty. We don’t see a cliff edge in demand coming as FTB interest remains higher year-on-year, in line with the wider market."

In terms of regions, Northern Ireland saw the fastest growth in average prices in December, increasing by 7.7%.

Scotland and Wales saw increases of 2.8% and 2.7% respectively, while the North West was the best performing region in England, with prices jumping by 3.2% annually.

Looking ahead, Donnell said that the first few weeks of each year "tend to provide a clear indication of how the rest of the year will upfold".

He stated that with 2025 starting better than both 2023 and 2024, this "bodes well" for market activity over the rest of the year.

He concluded: "While some are rushing to beat the new stamp duty levels by March, we don’t see this having a major impact on activity overall. Three in five FTBs will still pay no stamp duty from April and the extra costs on homeowner movers remains manageable.

"A healthy stock of homes for sale will keep price rises in check and we are forecasting that average UK house prices will rise by 2.5% in 2025, with 5% more sales taking place than last year, a predicted total of 1.15 million. Rising incomes and base rate cuts are set to continue improving housing affordability over 2025."

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