Budget 2025

The Budget 2025 – Property and Mortgages

At Condies Wealth, we’re cutting through the noise to bring you what really matters for your personal finances and wealth. Expect three special blogs this week—today, tomorrow, and Friday—packed with insights you can use.

We kick things off with commentary from Randal McLister, Director at Condies Wealth, focusing on property and mortgages.

Property & Mortgages: What’s the story?

“On the property front, it’s largely steady as she goes—stamp duty remains, and housing measures are unchanged. For those in Scotland, mark your calendars: 13 January 2026 is when we’ll learn if there are any tweaks to the LBTT regime.

There is, however, a notable update on property income tax. If you own a buy-to-let, you’ll see this under “Profit from Land and Property” on your tax calculation. The rate is set to rise by 2% across the board, meaning:

In Scotland, the impact is still unclear because this tax currently falls under the devolved income tax regime.  We will keep you posted.

Mansion Tax Alert

England will introduce a new surcharge on properties worth over £2 million—a graduated council tax surcharge starting at £2,500. Scotland’s position on this remains uncertain as again it’s devolved.

Mortgages? No major announcements—but here’s the good news: rates are looking healthy right now. Swap rates (the rates lenders use behind the scenes) are trending down for two-year deals and holding steady for five-year terms. That translates to market rates currently hovering around 3.60%–3.70%.

In short, it’s a great time to review your mortgage options with us. While a December base rate cut might be on the horizon, most of that is already baked into current pricing. If your mortgage deal expires within six months, get in touch with our mortgage team today. If it’s further out, let us know and we’ll schedule the perfect time to revisit.”

To summarise, in Scotland there are no real changes for now but January may tell a different story.  In England, there are changes due to the property income noted above.  On top of the recent Renters Rights Bill coming into force (England only) in May 2026 it seems buy to lets are facing a more expensive future.

What’s next from us?

Tomorrow we discuss income and pensions.  Jamie Kinnear, Director for Condies Wealth will take us through the budget from this perspective and remind you what you can (and ideally should) do.