A recent Financial Times column brings fresh urgency to a longstanding problem: Britain’s housing market is stuck – and stamp duty is a big part of the reason.
In a personal and pointed reflection on the cost of moving house, residential property expert Neal Hudson paints a familiar picture for many families: outgrowing their homes but unable to afford the leap to something bigger. Stamp duty, high house prices, and slow wage growth have conspired to freeze mobility and lock people into unsuitable housing. For campaigners like us at Fairer Share, it’s yet more evidence that our property tax system is overdue for reform.
The Issue: Fewer Movers, Less Fairness
Once upon a time, the housing market promised progression. First-time buyers could start small and “move up the ladder” as their families and incomes grew. That promise is breaking down.
Homeowners are moving far less than they used to. According to the article, quarterly sales across England and Wales are now 27% lower than they were before the 2008 financial crash — with today’s transaction levels resembling the depths of the early 1990s housing slump.
Why? It’s not just rising house prices. It’s that the costs of moving – especially stamp duty – make the next step feel financially impossible for many. When it costs tens of thousands of pounds just to move, people stay put, even when their homes no longer fit their lives.
And that has knock-on effects: fewer transactions mean less labour mobility, lower tax revenue, and a housing market that can’t adapt to demand.
Who’s Being Affected?
The article highlights that today’s homeowners are older and more settled, while younger people are increasingly locked out. Those who did manage to get on the ladder – often after significant struggle – are now stuck on the same rung.
Hudson reports that a growing share of middle-aged homeowners are still living in the first home they ever bought. That’s not because they want to, but because moving up is no longer realistic. The dream of gradual progression has become just that: a dream.
Why Stamp Duty Matters
One of the biggest barriers to moving is stamp duty land tax – a charge that penalises anyone looking to relocate, regardless of their reason. As Hudson writes, it’s a “stupid tax” that you would never design from scratch. Its distorting effect on the market is now undeniable.
First introduced as a minor administrative fee, stamp duty has ballooned into a major cost that deters movement and dampens the whole housing economy. It punishes the very behaviour we should be encouraging: using our housing stock efficiently, downsizing when needed, and allowing growing families to find space.
A Better Way Forward
At Fairer Share, we’ve long argued for the abolition of stamp duty and council tax, to be replaced with a single Proportional Property Tax – one that’s based on the actual value of your home, and your ability to pay. This would eliminate the barriers to moving, while ensuring fairer contributions from those with the most valuable properties.
It would also reduce the dysfunction currently baked into the housing system. Under our proposals, more people could move home when they needed to – not just when they received a windfall or inherited equity.
Time for Political Courage
Unfortunately, as the article notes, “the current government doesn’t appear willing to grasp that massive political nettle.” Reforming property taxes has long been seen as too risky. But the cost of inaction is mounting. Families are stuck. Jobs are missed. Communities are strained.
The housing market cannot keep relying on perpetual price growth to function – especially when that growth is increasingly out of step with wages. We need a system that supports homeowners at every stage of life, not one that punishes ambition or forces people to compromise indefinitely.
We believe it’s time to fix the broken ladder. Join us in calling for a property tax system that works for everyone – not just those already at the top. Visit fairershare.org.uk/supporters to find out who we have backing us from the political sphere. Is your MP missing? Let them know!