Budget 2026: What It Means for Kent Home Movers

Budget 2026 and Stamp Duty: no change

The Chancellor delivered the Budget on Wednesday 28 October 2026, and the published rates show no change to Stamp Duty on homes. If you are buying in Kent, you pay the same as before:

• Home movers: nothing on the first £125,000, then 2% to £250,000, 5% to £925,000, 10% to £1.5 million and 12% above that.
• First-time buyers: nothing on the first £300,000 and 5% from £300,001 to £500,000, on homes costing up to £500,000.
• Additional homes and buy-to-let: the 5% surcharge still applies, plus 2% for non-UK residents.

In the year to August 2026, the typical home sold in Margate, Ramsgate, Deal, Dover, Folkestone, Chatham and Westgate-on-Sea for £300,000 or less, so a first-time buyer would pay no Stamp Duty on it. In Sevenoaks, where the typical home sold for £580,000, the first-time buyer relief does not apply and the bill is £19,000. Our Stamp Duty guide has worked examples.

Your First Home: new help for first-time buyers

The Budget set out the rules for Your First Home, a £4.7 billion equity loan scheme. It works like the old Help to Buy:

• New builds only, from developers signed up to the scheme, and the home must be your main home.
• A 2.5% deposit, a government equity loan of 20% of the price, and a mortgage for the rest.
• No interest on the equity loan for the first five years.
• A household income cap of £110,000 outside London, and a local price cap for each area.
• Timing: applications are expected to open in February 2027, with the first loans from April 2027.

On a £300,000 new build, that would mean a £7,500 deposit, a £60,000 equity loan and a £232,500 mortgage. Stamp Duty is still worked out on the full price. The government has not yet published the price caps for Kent, so check them before you reserve a plot.

New-build purchases need extra checks from your solicitor, such as the build warranty, estate charges and the developer’s deadlines. See our guide to new-build conveyancing in Kent.

Lifetime ISA: a smaller charge above £450,000

Until now, using a Lifetime ISA to buy a first home costing more than £450,000 meant a 25% withdrawal charge, which took back the government bonus and some of your own savings too. Since 29 October 2026 that charge is 20%, so you keep everything you paid in. The £450,000 cap itself has not changed.

That matters in parts of west Kent. Typical prices were £430,000 in Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge and £580,000 in Sevenoaks in the year to August 2026. If you plan to use a Lifetime ISA, tell your solicitor early: they ask your ISA provider to release the money in time for completion.

A new First Time Buyer ISA will replace the Lifetime ISA for new savers from April 2029, with a 25% bonus on first homes up to £450,000, capped at £20,000. Existing Lifetime ISAs carry on under the current rules. See our first-time buyer guide.

Landlords and buy-to-let

From 6 April 2027, income tax on rent will be 24% for basic-rate taxpayers, 44% for higher-rate and 49% for additional-rate. That is two points more than the rates announced in 2025. Stamp Duty on buy-to-let purchases is unchanged, including the 5% surcharge.

Homes worth £2 million or more

The High Value Council Tax Surcharge, announced in 2025, will go ahead from April 2028 with the threshold kept at £2 million. Owners, not tenants, will pay £2,500 to £7,500 a year on top of their council tax. Very few Kent homes are affected: the typical home in every Kent town we track sold for under £600,000 in the year to August 2026.

What to do next

• Buying now? Nothing in the Budget is a reason to wait. Stamp Duty is the same whenever you complete.
• First-time buyer looking at new builds? Watch for the Kent price caps and for developers joining Your First Home ahead of February.
• Selling? Buyers who paused before the Budget now know the rules. Instructing a solicitor when you list helps keep a sale moving.
• Interest rates: the Bank of England’s next decision is on 5 November. See our interest rates update.