Most people don't pay capital gains tax on their homes because there's a pretty big exemption on the size of the profit that is untaxable from the sale of your primary residence - $250k for single filers, $500k for couples. There's some rules about what constitutes a primary residence, though, and how things work out for multi-unit dwellings that you live in. And if you live somewhere expensive for a good long while, you might fall afoul of the exemption limits.

I'm not really sure I understand how the English/British attitude towards homes translates into levying property tax on residents vs. owners...?