Cost of moving home soared beyond £10k for the first time last year

The average cost of moving home in Britain surpassed £10,000 for the first time last year, according to new research.

Those moving home collectively spent £9.8billion in 2018, which averaged out at £10,047 per move, a new study by Compare My Move shows.

This is an annual increase of around £500 – a result of house prices rising across all but one region.

London was the only area where house prices dropped and therefore, the cost of moving, reduced. However, those in the capital still pay the most in fees – at nearly £28,000. 

Compare My Move, the comparison website that looks at the cost of moving house in Britain, analysed how much it would cost for homeowners and first time buyers to move, using the latest official UK Housing data and its own calculator.

It included removal prices for moving the average three bedroom home, stamp duty payments, conveyancing and estate agent fees as well as extra payments such as for an Energy Performance Certificate. 

The research discovered that despite the annual moving cost reduction, homeowners in London still had to pay far higher bill than other regions, spending on average a hefty £27,769.

The South East was the second most expensive region to move in, costing movers on average £17,219. The East of England was the third priciest area, with movers paying on average £14,157 in fees.

By comparison, the North East was the cheapest region in which to move, costing the average homeowner just £5,148.

Wales was the next cheapest region with costs coming to £5,561, closely followed by Scotland which amounted to £6,192 on average. 

Dave Sayce, co-founder of Compare My Move, said: ‘Moving house can be expensive, but there are a few avenues for saving on your bill. 

‘Our recent research shows that unpopular moving days tend to be the cheapest for removal costs: moving on a Sunday could save you 21 per cent and a Tuesday 14 per cent off the overall average.

‘Always compare at least three quotes for your removals, conveyancing and surveying needs. 

‘There are clear savings to be made by comparing different companies, but make sure you’re clear about your requirements so that there are no last minute surprises.

‘It’s important to remember that cheapest may not always be best depending on the complexity of your move.’ 

Stamp duty  

Stamp duty takes up a significant amount of the high sums movers have to pay -making up around 35 per cent of the average moving cost.

However, the tax makes up the majority of the cost for regions with high house prices, taking up a whopping 60 per cent of the £27,769 moving bill for Londoners and 52 per cent of the £17,219 bill for those in the South East.

In contrast, stamp duty makes up eight per cent of the £5,148 moving bill in the North East.

Thanks to Wales’ new Land Transaction Tax, the average Welsh mover paid just £236 in duty in 2018, a huge reduction from the £1,234 that it would have cost under the previous stamp duty system.

This means it pays the least to move house with an average cost of moving at £5,561, cheaper than both Scotland, at £6,192 and England, at £10,887 – which pays almost double. 

First-time buyers 

For first-time buyers, for which Compare My Move focused just on 22-29 year olds, the bill was much lower, spending on average £1,761 to move into their first home in 2018.

However, this is because the average first time buyer had some financial assistance in the form of stamp duty relief, which is available for properties costing below £300,000, meaning they made a saving of £1,392, the average cost of stamp duty in the UK.

Most first-time buyers across the country escape paying stamp duty, but many in London don’t. Their moving costs are a far higher average £7,678 as a result.

This accounts for a massive 74 per cent of the moving costs – more than four times the national average.

The high cost of buying a home in the capital means the average first-time buyer will spend a further year and three months, on top of saving for a deposit, saving for these extra costs.

It took all other regions between two and four months to save for the extra costs needed.  

The cheapest place for first-time buyers to move is Scotland as the average moving cost there amounted to just £1,331.

This is thanks to the lower-than-average house prices and the savings made on property surveys, as the Home Report is paid for by the seller in Scotland. 

Sayce added: ‘It’s vital that first time buyers are fully aware of these extra costs. With many young renters taking years to save for a deposit on their first home, these extra costs are a nasty surprise if not budgeted in.

‘It’ll take the average millennial four months of saving to cover the £1,700 of moving costs, so it pays to be fully aware ahead of time.’