Propertymark has called on the Scottish Government to cut property taxes after First Minister John Swinney used his Programme for Government to confirm further intervention across homeownership, renting and high-value housing.
The five-year programme confirmed the recently launched First Homes Fund will continue throughout the parliamentary term, alongside plans to deliver 111,000 affordable homes by 2032, at least 70% of which are intended for social rent. It also confirmed plans to explore giving private tenants the opportunity to buy their home when a landlord decides to sell and legislation introducing new Council Tax bands for Scotland’s most expensive properties.
However, there was no corresponding reduction in the taxes associated with buying property or investing in the private rented sector.
Scotland’s existing Land and Buildings Transaction Tax rates remain unchanged for 2026/27, while the Additional Dwelling Supplement payable on qualifying additional property purchases remains at 8%.
FIRST-TIME BUYERS
The First Homes Fund provides eligible first-time buyers with a Scottish Government shared-equity contribution of up to £10,000 towards homes costing no more than £300,000.
The Government expects around 50,000 households to benefit from the £500 million scheme over the parliamentary term.
Timothy Douglas (main picture, inset), Head of Policy and Campaigns at Propertymark, welcomed the continued commitment to first-time buyers and affordable housing but argued more needs to be done to address the costs facing the wider property market.
He says: “For all the words about strengthening the economy, there was no mention of reducing costs and taxes for renters and home buyers and sellers.
“History shows us that when property taxation is lowered or removed, transactions increase in the sales market, while a reduced tax burden for landlords means fewer costs being passed on to tenants via higher rents.”
HIGH-VALUE HOMES
The legislative programme also confirms a Council Tax (Scotland) Bill introducing two additional bands for high-value homes from April 2028.
Band I will cover properties valued between £1 million and £2 million, while Band J will apply above £2 million. Unlike the existing system, these properties will be assessed using up-to-date valuations. The Scottish Government estimates fewer than 1% of households will be affected.
Douglas warns the measure could create complications at the top of the market.
He says: “The Council Tax (Scotland) Bill will introduce two extra bands for the mansion tax, a measure that will only target a small minority of properties and risks this end of the market being held up by disputes over valuations and administration.”
Propertymark also called for proposed minimum energy efficiency standards to be realistic for different property types and locations.
Scottish Government proposals have previously envisaged minimum standards applying to new private rented tenancies from 2028 and all tenancies from 2033, although the final requirements remain subject to the legislative and regulatory process.
