Council tax pressure on high-value homes
Wednesday 15th July, 2026
MPs are urging Andy Burnham to add higher council tax bands for England’s most valuable homes, potentially alongside a mansion tax from 2028, to modernise an outdated 1991-based system.
This gives Rightmove a chance to comment on how council tax changes could affect the UK housing market, buyer behaviour and pricing trends in England.
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Why have we flagged this?
Potential major reform to property taxation directly affects the high-end housing market and would drive searches and enquiries—Rightmove can provide market data and price-band impacts for journalists.
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Thinking...
Expert comment
Council tax reform needs revaluation, not just new bands
Rightmove can argue that without updating 1991 bands using today’s market distribution, new top bands risk distorting behaviour and fairness across regions.
Expert comment angle: Offer your housing market director to BBC, Times, FT and Indy with a clear line: revalue bands using modern price data and phase changes to avoid shocks.
Why: A specific, data-grounded stance from the UK’s biggest portal is quotable and credible.
Newsjack
Instant council tax checker for your street
Launch a simple tool that estimates a home’s likely band under a modernised system using today’s local price percentiles, so consumers see if they’d move up, down or stay similar.
Newsjack angle: Spin up a web calculator using your local price distributions and band thresholds; pitch to national money desks and embed on Rightmove’s blog.
Why: A fast, useful utility turns a technical policy row into a personal, clickable story for millions.
Data idea
Where a mansion tax would hit hardest in England
Use live listing prices to map how many homes breach £1.5m and £2m in each local authority to show likely hotspots for higher council tax or a mansion tax.
Data to investigate: Pull your current for-sale listing prices to calculate the share and count of homes above £1.5m and £2m by local authority.
Why: One clean stat per area lets every newsroom localise a national tax story instantly.