Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by PropertyWire. Read the original article for full details.

Survey Reveals Regional Split on Annual Property Tax Proposal

A new survey of 2,203 UK adults has found significant regional differences in attitudes towards replacing council tax and stamp duty with an annual property tax based on home values. The research, commissioned by estate agency Cavendish, highlights stronger support for the proposal in northern England and Wales, with greater opposition in regions with higher property prices.

Support for the annual property tax was highest in the North East (37%) and North West (35%), while London (28%) and the South East (23%) showed the lowest levels of support. Wales also recorded relatively high support at 33%. The North West and Wales had the highest proportion of respondents who strongly supported the idea at 16%, compared to just 7% in both London and the South East.

Opposition to the proposal was most pronounced in London and the South East, where 16% of respondents strongly opposed the change, compared with 10% in the North West. Nationally, 37% of those surveyed said they did not know whether they supported or opposed replacing the current system with an annual property tax.

The survey asked about a proposal similar to one reportedly being explored by Prime Minister Andy Burnham. The findings come amid a slowdown in UK house price growth and ongoing regional disparities in housing affordability. The pattern of support and opposition appears to reflect regional house price variations, with higher-value markets showing greater resistance to the proposed changes.

The research suggests that the debate over property tax reform is still at an early stage, with a large proportion of respondents undecided. The proposal would affect homeowners differently depending on property values and transaction frequency, and current regional price disparities indicate that the financial impact would vary significantly by location.

These findings are relevant for letting agents and inventory clerks, as any changes to property tax could influence market activity, landlord decisions, and tenant affordability across different UK regions.