Property makes up nearly half of all the wealth in estates paying inheritance tax (IHT) in London, new data shows.
A freedom of information request to HMRC by Just Group found property made up 47% of the wealth in estates paying IHT in London in the most recent available data set, with the average property value exceeding £862,000.
The average estate value in the capital was over £1.6 million – nearly £400,000 higher than the East of England, which held joint-second highest average estate value with the South East.
David Cooper, director at the retirement specialist Just Group, said of the findings: “It is evident that housing wealth in regions like London, the East and the South East makes up a larger proportion of the estates compared to other regions. The average value of property in London estates paying IHT is nearly double that of most other regions across the UK.”
“The introduction of the residence nil-rate band in 2015 reduced the IHT due for some of those leaving property to a direct descendant but the threshold has been held at £175,000 since 2021.
“With asset prices continuing to grow and the IHT regime seeing a significant tightening in the Autumn Budget 2024, it’s likely more people will be dragged into paying the tax through the value of their property.”
