Your next investment in England
starts with a conversation.

Yes. There is no legal restriction on foreign nationals buying a home in England in their own name, and ownership is separate from immigration status, so it gives no right to live in the UK. A company or trust vehicle from abroad must first register on the Register of Overseas Entities at Companies House. Your name and the price paid become public at HM Land Registry once the purchase is registered.

Leasehold is the normal way to own a flat in England: you own a long lease, often 99 to 999 years, from the freeholder, and pay a service charge for the building. On most new leases granted since 30 June 2022 the ground rent is limited to a peppercorn, in effect zero. What matters is the detail: the length of the lease, the service charge, the use restrictions and any ground rent on an older contract. Your solicitor checks all of it before exchange.

Stamp Duty Land Tax is charged slice by slice: 0% up to £125,000, 2% to £250,000, 5% to £925,000, 10% to £1.5 million and 12% above. A buyer who is not UK resident adds 2% on every slice, and a buyer who will own another home anywhere in the world worth £40,000 or more adds a further 5%, so the top slice can reach 19%. The rates in force at completion apply, not those at reservation.

You reserve the flat with a reservation fee, your solicitor reviews the contract and the lease, and at exchange you pay a deposit, usually 10% of the price. On a long build some developers take further stage payments, so up to 30% may be paid before completion. The contract sets a long-stop date after which you can cancel and recover your deposits if the home is not built. When it is ready the developer serves notice to complete, usually ten working days, and you pay the balance and the stamp duty.

New homes come with a 10-year warranty, such as NHBC Buildmark, which mortgage lenders require. Between exchange and completion it covers the loss of your deposit if the builder becomes insolvent; for the first two years after completion the builder must put defects right, and years three to ten insure the structure. Your solicitor also checks how the deposit is held.

No. The UK has no visa based on buying property. The Tier 1 Investor visa closed to new applicants on 17 February 2022, and property never counted towards it. Time spent in the UK can make you UK tax resident, though, which changes your stamp duty, capital gains and inheritance tax position, so take tax advice before planning long stays.

If you let the flat, the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme has your agent or tenant deduct basic-rate tax from the rent unless HMRC lets you receive it gross and file a return, and property income rates rise by 2 points from April 2027. When you sell, non-residents pay UK capital gains tax, at 18% or 24% for individuals, reported within 60 days of completion. The flat is also within UK inheritance tax, at 40% above the nil-rate band, wherever you live.

Nothing to the buyer. Our commission is paid by the developer, so you pay the same price as buying direct. Stamp duty, legal fees and surveys are separate and set out in full before you reserve, and your own UK solicitor handles the conveyancing.