Property taxes in Scotland raised £717.2m in the last year, according to analysis of the latest statistics by DJ Alexander Ltd.
The firm said Scottish Government revenues from Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) increased by 17.3% from September 2024 to August 2025.
This equates to £1,964,931 collected from homebuyers for every day of the year and is £106.0m higher than the previous 12 months.
Of the total raised, £222.3m came from the Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS), charged to property investors, landlords and second home buyers.
This represents 31.9% of the total and is £59.4m higher than the year before. Almost all residential taxes were generated from properties sold above £325,001, where a 10% levy applies.
The 19,760 transactions above this threshold raised £410.8m, accounting for 83.0% of the £494.9m in LBTT from residential sales, excluding ADS. The average tax levied per transaction was £20,789.
David Alexander, chief executive officer of DJ Alexander Scotland, said: “The tax take from Scottish homebuyers continues to reach higher and higher levels each year with the latest 12-month period achieving a record total.
“With almost £2m a day being collected from homebuyers it is extraordinary that so much tax is being levied on a relatively small proportion of the population.”
He added: “That almost a third of this – a total of £222.3m – comes from landlords and second home buyers is further evidence of just how crucial this group is in maintaining high levels of taxable income for the Scottish Government.
“The appetite for buying Scottish homes remains undimmed for property investors, landlords and second homeowners despite ADS taxation increasing from 6 to 8% last year.”
Alexander continued: “The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), along with many private investors who are desperate to invest in Scotland, believes that the current LBTT policy is more likely to reduce investment activity north of the border.
“At a time when there has never been a greater need for more private investment in housing in Scotland this level of taxation is unlikely to encourage financial growth.”
He concluded: “Yet these figures also highlight how enthusiastic many property investors and landlords are to buy in Scotland.
“These figures indicate serious investment interest despite the additional taxation. Imagine the possibilities were the tax position to ease substantially and be level with our English counterparts?
“Scotland undoubtedly remains a key location for property investors who see the buoyancy of the market, the high demand, and the potential for growth in the future.
“If the tax position were more relaxed and equivalent to the rest of the UK, then this would be a market with major growth potential in the future.
“Until then we must rely on the continued generosity of property investors and landlords to financially support the Scottish market by agreeing to pay these not insubstantial sums of taxation.”
