Completed sales dropped from 122,000 in October to 106,000 last month.
However, the November figure was still higher than for the same month last year.
Overall, it means that residential sales for the first 11 months of 2015 are almost identical to those for the same period last year.
If that pattern continues in December, then sales for the whole of this year are likely to match those for 2014 at about 1.22 million.
Andrew Montlake at the London mortgage brokers Coreco said: "This year we have gone back to some normal seasonality, for the first time in a long while.
"Also some amateur landlords may have been put off buying buy-to-let properties because of the impending tax changes they face."
The number of homes sold in the UK fell sharply in November, according to the latest figures from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).