The introduction of the £2 million property tax has instantly become one of the most consequential housing policy changes of the decade. But who will feel the impact first — and where will the pressure be greatest? Newly compiled analysis, powered by Doorda AI and drawn from one of the many datasets within Doorda Property, reveals a detailed and sometimes surprising picture of the UK’s high-end housing market. This is not just a London story. It is a nationwide story of concentrated wealth, fast-growing regional hotspots, and long-term trends that show how the UK’s luxury property.

Top Locations Most Impacted with Forecasted Tax Revenue

(Number of Properties last sold for over £2 million x £4,500)

London Leads by a Mile — With 37,542 Homes Above the Threshold

Any discussion of the £2 million property tax begins with London, and for good reason. The capital contains a staggering 37,542 properties valued above £2 million — more than the next 19 UK cities combined. This concentration ensures that London will bear the brunt of the tax, especially in boroughs where high-value homes dominate the local market.

But even within the capital region, the landscape is far from uniform. Some towns and districts reveal far deeper concentrations of high-value residential stock.

Cobham: The UK’s Most Concentrated Luxury Market

The data shows that Cobham sits at the very top of the national ranking, with nearly 10% of all local properties valued above the £2 million mark. No other part of the country even comes close to this level of concentration.

Other affluent pockets show similarly high exposure:

• Beaconsfield: 6.6% of homes exceed £2M
• Ascot, Richmond, Weybridge: each breaking the 4% mark

These micro-markets represent the areas where the £2 million property tax will immediately reshape financial decisions, property valuations, and potentially the behaviour of both homeowners and investors.

(Location of properties last sold for over £2 million)

Luxury Property Goes Regional — Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham on the Rise

While London dominates the numbers, the analysis reveals an increasingly national story. Several major cities have built substantial high-end property markets over the past decade, and these areas will also be significantly affected by the policy.

• Manchester: 533 properties above £2M
• Bristol: 503
• Birmingham: 431
• Leeds: 430

The expansion of the £2M+ segment into regional cities shows that the tax will have meaningful implications across England’s major urban centres — not just the commuter belt or the capital.

Freehold vs Leasehold: What the Tenure Split Tells Us

One of the most interesting insights from the Doorda Property dataset lies in the ownership split between freehold and leasehold homes. While London’s luxury market is a blend of the two, regional cities show a strong tilt toward freehold ownership.

• London: 23,797 freehold vs 13,745 leasehold properties over £2M
• Regions: overwhelmingly freehold-dominant

This divide matters. The £2 million property tax may influence owners’ behaviour differently depending on whether they hold the freehold or leasehold interest, potentially affecting how the market reacts — including in areas like refinancing, portfolio adjustments, or transaction timing.

A Decade of Volatility: Pricing Trends from 2015–2025

The analysis, supported by Doorda AI, draws on more than a decade of pricing and transaction data. The period from 2015 to 2025 shows clear volatility, with dramatic peaks and troughs:

• 2020 recorded the highest average prices — over £10 million
• 2021–2022 remained buoyant with more than 8,000 transactions annually
• 2023–2024 brought price normalisation but sustained transaction volume

This long view is critical for understanding how today’s £2 million property tax will interact with a market that is deeply cyclical, sensitive to global macroeconomic shifts, and heavily driven by international buyer demand in certain segments.

The £2 million property tax will hit certain pockets hard, while leaving others largely untouched.

Why This Matters: Tax, Geography and Market Reality

The combined insights from Doorda Property and Doorda AI, point to several important implications:

• The tax will impact thousands of owners outside London, particularly in fast-growing regional luxury markets.
• Ultra-affluent commuter towns will face the highest immediate tax exposure due to extreme concentrations.
• Many coastal and rural communities will be largely unaffected, highlighting the geographic and socio-economic inequality in the UK housing market.
• Long-term volatility suggests this tax could amplify future market cycles, rather than soften them.

Conclusion: A Tax That Reshapes More Than Just London’s Prime Postcodes

This analysis — powered by one of the many datasets in Doorda Property and amplified using Doorda AI — paints a picture of a luxury housing market that is larger, more geographically diverse, and more dynamically changing than many assume. It also shows how limited the reach of the £2 million property tax, however if prices continue to rise then many more properties will be pulled into the new tax.

The £2 million property tax will undoubtedly reshape parts of London. But its ripples will extend far beyond the capital, affecting affluent commuter towns, regional cities — and leaving untouched many parts of the country where property values are more modest. For homeowners, investors, and analysts, understanding these shifts is essential — because the impact of this tax will be felt far and wide, but unevenly.