Nation

Buying a home in Northern Ireland: prices and purchase tax

A home in Northern Ireland cost £202,487 on average in August 2026 (+9.2% over twelve months); at that price, a home mover pays £1,550 of Stamp Duty Land Tax.

Data as of August 2026: average prices of the UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry, Registers of Scotland, Land & Property Services and ONS), all property types. 23,682 sales over the latest twelve months with complete volumes.

Northern Ireland: the market in figures

Northern Ireland shows the sharpest short-term climb among the nations: 9.2% over the latest year, against 3.1% in Wales, 2.9% in Scotland and 0.4% in England. The average of £202,487 remains 25.8% under the UK figure of £273,037.

In 2016 the average was £118,039. Reaching the present level took 71.5%, or £84,448. Years 2017 to 2020 ran at 3.3%, 4.5%, 3.9% and 2.8%; 2021 and 2022 added 10.7% and 10.5%. None of the years shows a fall. Further gains were 2% in 2023, 6.3% in 2024 and 7% in 2025, leaving the latest year as the highest of the run.

The type prices hold a quirk. Flats, at £148,475, cost more than terraced homes, at £145,980. Detached homes average £312,624 and semi-detached £204,283, which puts the distance from detached to flat at £164,149, or 110.6%. No first-time buyer figure is available here.

Belfast is the only covered area. Its average is £184,768, up 7.7%, on 4,726 sales out of the 23,682 recorded across the nation.

Stamp Duty Land Tax applies. Stamp Duty Land Tax at the national average is £1,550, or 0.8% of the price, when someone moves home; a first-time buyer is charged nothing, and an additional property costs £11,674. Move the same price into Scotland and LBTT would charge £1,150; into Wales, £0. There is no council tax in Northern Ireland. Homes pay domestic rates instead, calculated on capital value at 1 January 2005, with value above £400,000 ignored and a regional rate of 0.005559 per £1 in 2026-27.

Payotte, from the UK HPI and the calculator.

Calculate for Northern Ireland

If you sell

Capital Gains Tax on the sale

Your main home, lived in for all the time you owned it: no tax (Private Residence Relief). A second home or a buy-to-let: Capital Gains Tax, same rates in all four nations.

Sale price in £

Purchase price in £

Costs you can deduct in £, optional

Your Income Tax rate

Taxable income in £, for the basic rate

It was my main home all the time I owned it

Gain£84,448

Taxable after the £3,000 allowance£81,448

Rate24%

Capital Gains Tax£19,548

Report and pay within 60 days of completion. Assumes no other gains this tax year and the whole £3,000 allowance unused (2026 to 2027).

Default example: bought at the average price in Northern Ireland in August 2016 (£118,039), sold at the August 2026 average (£202,487), UK House Price Index. Rates for 2026 to 2027: 24% for higher and additional rate taxpayers; for basic rate taxpayers, 18% on the part of the gain that fits in the £37,700 basic Income Tax band once added to taxable income (income minus Personal Allowance), 24% above (HMRC). Gain = sale price − purchase price − costs of buying, selling and improving; Payotte does not estimate those costs (no official scale). GOV.UK: Capital Gains Tax rates · Tax when you sell your home.

Frequently asked questions

What is the average house price in Northern Ireland?

The average price of a home in Northern Ireland was £202,487 in August 2026, +9.2% over twelve months (UK House Price Index).

Have house prices gone up in Northern Ireland?

The average price in Northern Ireland went from £118,039 in August 2016 to £202,487 in August 2026, a change of +71.5%; +9.2% over the last twelve months (UK House Price Index).

How much Stamp Duty Land Tax on an average-priced home in Northern Ireland?

On £202,487, Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) comes to £1,550 for a home mover, £0 for a first-time buyer and £11,674 for an additional property, at the rates in force in Northern Ireland.

How much tax when you sell a home in Northern Ireland?

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 Northern Ireland in August 2016 (£118,039) and sold at the August 2026 average (£202,487), the gain of £84,448 costs a higher rate taxpayer £19,548, before deducting the costs of buying, selling and improving. The tax is reported and paid within 60 days of completion (HMRC).

Prices by property type, August 2026

Type	Average price	UK
Detached	£312,624	£443,846
Semi-detached	£204,283	£278,675
Terraced	£145,980	£232,505
Flat or maisonette	£148,475	£194,148
All types	£202,487	£273,037

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	£118,039	—
2017	£121,964	+3.3%
2018	£127,398	+4.5%
2019	£132,336	+3.9%
2020	£136,013	+2.8%
2021	£150,563	+10.7%
2022	£166,363	+10.5%
2023	£169,726	+2%
2024	£180,467	+6.3%
2025	£193,080	+7%
2026	£202,487	+4.9%

Areas covered in Northern Ireland

Belfast£184,768

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).