Home Mover Mortgages

Mortgage Options for Home Movers

Standard Residential Mortgages — The most common route when selling your current home and buying another. Your equity becomes your deposit, which can significantly improve your loan-to-value and interest rate options.

Porting Your Existing Mortgage — Many lenders allow you to transfer your current mortgage rate to your new property. If you need to borrow more, the additional borrowing is usually placed on a new rate. Porting can help you avoid early repayment charges.

95% Home-Mover Mortgages — Some lenders offer high loan-to-value products for movers with smaller deposits. Criteria are stricter than for first-time buyers, but these products can help if your equity is limited.

New-Build Mortgages — If you’re buying a new-build home, lenders may restrict the maximum loan-to-value, especially for flats. There are dedicated products for new-builds, and developers sometimes offer incentives.

Consumer Buy-to-Let (formerly Let-to-Buy) — If you want to keep your current home and rent it out instead of selling, you can switch it to a consumer buy-to-let mortgage. This allows you to release equity and take a new residential mortgage for your onward purchase.

Bridging Finance — Short-term funding used when you need to complete on your new home before selling your current one. Useful for chain breaks or when timing doesn’t align.

Stamp Duty for Home Movers (2026)

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) applies when buying a residential property in England or Northern Ireland. Home movers pay the standard rates.

SDLT Rates for Main Residence (2026)

Up to £125,000 — 0%
£125,001 to £250,000 — 2%
£250,001 to £925,000 — 5%
£925,001 to £1.5m — 10%
Over £1.5m — 12%

Example If you buy at £450,000:

£0 on the first £125,000
£2,500 on the next £125,000 (2%)
£10,000 on the remaining £200,000 (5%) Total SDLT = £12,500