Cornwall: the market in figures
Midway down the table, Cornwall holds 57th place nationally, with 12th place of 13 in the South West. At £274,570 it is 0.6% above the UK's £273,037 and 9.7% below the regional £304,139, so it lands almost on the national line.
The recent trend points down. Over twelve months the average fell 2.9%, while the South West stood at 0%. The high came earlier, in 2022, at £294,537, and today's price is below it. The low was in 2016, at £202,236. Even so, the period as a whole shows growth of 35.8%, or £72,334. The strongest year was 2022 with 14.7%, followed by 2021 with 10.5%. Falls arrived in 2024, at 4.8%, and now at 2.9%, with 2023 sitting at 0%.
Detached houses top the list at £419,340, followed by semi-detached homes at £275,595, then terraced at £227,474; flats are lowest at £144,637. Between the lowest and highest types lies £274,703, or 189.9%. First-time buyers average £226,508, 17.5% lower than the all-buyer figure, and owe £0 in Stamp Duty Land Tax. The usual bill comes to £3,729 (1.4%), while an additional property owes £17,457. HM Land Registry takes £150.
The neighbours give a mixed picture. City of Plymouth (£223,229) is 18.7% lower and rose 3.2% over twelve months. West Devon (£286,921) is 4.5% higher, Exeter (£289,403) 5.4% higher, Teignbridge (£298,159) 8.6% higher and South Hams (£360,616) 31.3% higher. South Hams gained 0.8%, while West Devon, Exeter and Teignbridge slipped by 1.5%, 0.7% and 0.5%. Cornwall's fall of 2.9% is therefore the sharpest of the group.
Sales reached 8,004 during the year ending May 2026, a large count that makes the fall of 2.9% hard to put down to a few unusual deals. Cornwall therefore combines a price level close to the UK average with a falling trend and a busy market, a mix that the neighbour table above shows is not shared by Plymouth.
Payotte, from the UK HPI and the calculator.
Property professionals in Cornwall
One firm per trade, selected by Payotte on public data (5 of 5 trades filled in Cornwall). Companies, never individuals, with a regulator or register you can check with the official body.
| Trade | Firm | Google rating | Reviews | Score /100 | Status | Listing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estate agent | Cross Estate | 4.3 | 27 | 59 | Partial | View |
| Mortgage adviser | Cornwall Mortgages | 5 | 54 | 73 | Selected | View |
| Conveyancer | CVC Solicitors (Cornish Venning Ltd) | 4.6 | 84 | 74 | Selected | View |
| Surveyor | COR Building Surveys | 5 | 92 | 60 | Partial | View |
| Valuer | Atlantic Edge Property Group | 4.9 | 31 | 55 | Partial | View |
One firm per trade and per area, chosen on public data and scored out of 100 points — Google reviews (35), age of the company (30), checkable regulator or register (15), local anchoring (15), bonus (5). The ranking is never paid for. No firm can buy its place or its recommendation. How Payotte ranks firms
Calculate for Cornwall
Frequently asked questions
What is the average house price in Cornwall?
The average price of a home in Cornwall was £274,570 in August 2026, -2.9% over twelve months (UK House Price Index).
Have house prices gone up in Cornwall?
The average price in Cornwall went from £202,236 in August 2016 to £274,570 in August 2026, a change of +35.8%; -2.9% over the last twelve months (UK House Price Index).
How much Stamp Duty Land Tax on an average-priced home in Cornwall?
On £274,570, Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) comes to £3,729 for a home mover, £0 for a first-time buyer and £17,457 for an additional property, at the rates in force in England.
How much tax when you sell a home in Cornwall?
None on your main home if it was your only home, lived in for all the time you owned it, not let out and not used exclusively for business (Private Residence Relief). A second home or a buy-to-let pays Capital Gains Tax above the £3,000 allowance (2026 to 2027; rates in the calculator above). Bought at the average price in Cornwall in August 2016 (£202,236) and sold at the August 2026 average (£274,570), the gain of £72,334 costs a higher rate taxpayer £16,640, before deducting the costs of buying, selling and improving. The tax is reported and paid within 60 days of completion (HMRC).
Is Cornwall expensive?
Cornwall ranks 57th of the 135 areas Payotte covers for the average price in August 2026, from £1,204,072 in Kensington and Chelsea to £133,782 in City of Aberdeen.
Prices by property type, August 2026
| Type | Average price | South West |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £419,340 | £497,091 |
| Semi-detached | £275,595 | £325,573 |
| Terraced | £227,474 | £266,094 |
| Flat or maisonette | £144,637 | £173,470 |
| All types | £274,570 | £304,139 |
| First-time buyers | £226,508 | £250,662 |
The UK HPI is a mix-adjusted average (a hedonic model), not the price of the homes sold in the month. Northern Ireland figures are quarterly.
The trend, August of each year
| Year | Average price | Change on the year before |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | £202,236 | — |
| 2017 | £212,663 | +5.2% |
| 2018 | £221,819 | +4.3% |
| 2019 | £226,797 | +2.2% |
| 2020 | £232,388 | +2.5% |
| 2021 | £256,808 | +10.5% |
| 2022 | £294,537 | +14.7% |
| 2023 | £294,498 | -0% |
| 2024 | £280,310 | -4.8% |
| 2025 | £282,874 | +0.9% |
| 2026 | £274,570 | -2.9% |
Sources
- Prices and sales: UK House Price Index, file UK-HPI-full-file-2026-08.csv. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2020. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Purchase tax: rates and sources of the calculator (HMRC).
- Tax when you sell: Capital Gains Tax rates, Tax when you sell your home and Report and pay your Capital Gains Tax (GOV.UK, HMRC).