New homes cost about 9% more than they’re worth second-hand
Across 1.1 million new homes in England and Wales that were later resold, buyers paid a median 8.9% more for the home new than it was worth second-hand. On a typical new home sold in 2025 (£360,160), that’s about £29,400. The premium is highest in London (10.5%) and lowest in the South West (7.4%), and the longer people kept the home, the bigger the gap: 7.3% for those who sold within three years, 11.3% after ten years or more.
What we measured
HM Land Registry records home sales in England and Wales since 1995 and flags the first sale of a newly built home. 1.4 million new homes bought since then have been sold again at least a year later. For each one, we compared how much its price grew between the two sales with how much second-hand homes grew over the same years: same council area, same type of home, bought in the same year and sold in the same year.
If second-hand homes grew by 30% and the new home grew by 19%, the new home cost about 9% more than it was worth second-hand when it was bought. That gap is the new-build premium. We could match 1,146,739 new homes (79%) this way.
Region by region
The premium is similar everywhere: between 7.4% and 10.5% in every region. In pounds it follows prices, from about £23,000 in Wales to £54,600 in London.
| Region | Premium | New home, 2025 | In pounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| London | 10.5% | £575,000 | £54,600 |
| North East | 10.4% | £279,950 | £26,400 |
| North West | 10.1% | £319,995 | £29,400 |
| West Midlands | 10.1% | £325,000 | £29,800 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 9.8% | £294,995 | £26,300 |
| East Midlands | 9.2% | £318,998 | £26,900 |
| Wales | 8.3% | £300,000 | £23,000 |
| East of England | 7.9% | £415,000 | £30,400 |
| South East | 7.9% | £455,000 | £33,300 |
| South West | 7.4% | £375,000 | £25,800 |
“New home, 2025” is the median price paid for new homes in each region in 2025 (HM Land Registry, 50,196 sales registered so far). The premium in pounds is the part of that price that the premium accounts for.
Houses, flats and leasehold
Detached houses carry the smallest premium (7.5%); terraced houses the largest (10.0%). Leasehold homes, mostly flats, carry 9.6%, against 8.6% for freehold.
The longer you keep it, the bigger the gap
If the premium were only a one-off mark-up, the gap would stay the same however long people kept the home. Instead it widens: new homes went on to grow a little more slowly than comparable second-hand homes, too. Overall, 76% of new homes grew less than their second-hand comparisons.
Selling early is where it hurts. Of the homes resold within three years, 12.0% of new homes sold for less than the buyer paid, against 6.3% of comparable second-hand homes: about twice as often.
Has it changed over time?
To compare years fairly, this chart uses only homes resold within five years of being bought new.
The premium was 8–10% for homes bought new between 1995 and 2002, fell to 4–6% around the 2008 crash, and has been 6–8% since 2014. Homes bought new in the Help to Buy years (2013 to 2022) carried about the same premium (6.9%) as those bought in 2003 to 2012 (6.4%). Homes bought new in 2021 and 2022 show smaller gaps so far (5.0% and 2.7%), but only their quickest sellers have resold yet.
If you’re buying a new home
- Plan to stay. The premium is paid up front. Buyers who sold within three years were about twice as likely to sell at a loss as buyers of comparable second-hand homes.
- Check resales on the same development. HM Land Registry marks new-build sales, and our free sold-price check labels them “new build”, so you can see what homes on the street sold for new and what they fetched when resold.
- Ask what’s included. Builders often offer incentives, such as paying fees or adding extras, instead of cutting the price, and the register records the full price.
- Compare with second-hand homes nearby. A similar second-hand home on a nearby street is the fairest test of a new home’s price.
See what homes really sold for, on every listing
Kerblist adds HM Land Registry sold prices for the same type of home nearby, in today’s money, to every Rightmove, Zoopla and OnTheMarket listing, with how long it’s been for sale and its price cuts. Free, with no account.
Add to Chrome – freeHow we worked it out
- Sales. HM Land Registry Price Paid Data for England and Wales, January 1995 to August 2026: 31.6 million recorded sales. We used standard sales of houses and flats only, leaving out repossessions, company sales and buy-to-let purchases where they can be identified.
- Repeat sales. The same address (postcode, flat or house number or name, street) sold twice, at least a year apart, with the same property type and tenure both times. Pairs where the price fell below a third or rose more than fivefold were left out: those are usually rebuilds, part sales or errors.
- Matching. Each new home’s growth was compared with the median growth of second-hand homes in the same local authority, of the same type, bought in the same year and sold in the same year, where at least 10 such homes existed.
- The premium. Second-hand growth divided by the new home’s growth, minus one. We report the median across homes; for half of new homes it was between 0.4% and 18.6%.
- Checks. Run on second-hand homes alone, the method finds a premium of 0.0%, as it should. Requiring 30 comparison homes gives 9.1%; tighter price filters give 9.3%.
Limits. Only homes that have been resold are counted. The register doesn’t record size, condition, extensions or incentives, so a home improved between sales looks like growth. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate registers and aren’t included.
The full results, by region, type, tenure, years held and year bought, are free to use with credit to Kerblist and a link to this page: download the CSV.
Questions
How much more do new builds cost than second-hand homes?
About 9% more. Across 1.1 million new homes in England and Wales that were later resold, buyers paid a median 8.9% more for the home new than it was worth second-hand. On a typical new home sold in 2025 (£360,160), that is about £29,400.
Do new builds lose value?
Most new homes still rise in value, but from a price that included a premium. 76% of the new homes in HM Land Registry’s records grew less than comparable second-hand homes, and of those resold within three years, 12.0% sold for less than the buyer paid, against 6.3% of comparable second-hand homes.
Where is the new-build premium highest?
In London (10.5%), and lowest in the South West (7.4%). In pounds it is largest in London: about £54,600 on a typical new London home.
Did Help to Buy raise the new-build premium?
Not in this data. Homes bought new in the Help to Buy years (2013 to 2022) and resold within five years carried a 6.9% premium, against 6.4% for those bought in 2003 to 2012.
This study is general information, not financial advice.
Sources
- HM Land Registry Price Paid Data, England and Wales, January 1995 to August 2026 (released 28 September 2026). Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Kerblist’s analysis: results as CSV.