According to the Lloyds Banking Group, the average cost of moving home has increased by 4% in a year from £11,624 to £12,110.
The holistic figure is calculated by adding up stamp duty, home removal costs, estate agent fees and surveyor costs.
A consistent rise in the price of houses has contributed to a huge 13% rise in stamp duty rates. The figures indicating that this tax accounts for half of the overall moving costs.
The whole picture is most startling when it is compared with costs incurred a decade earlier. Average gross annual earnings have increased by 18% in this ten-year period.
In contrast, house prices have increased by 26% and the price of moving has risen by 31%; highlighting the extreme difficulty first time buyers face, not only with financing a deposit but also financing the move.
Unsurprisingly, the London microbubble presents the most expensive house moving picture. If you plan to move home in London, the average will strip you of three times the national average with figures over £30,000 very likely.
Regions with significant growth throughout the year have also experienced the inevitable jump in prices; if you have delayed your house move in the West Midlands by a year, it will now cost you 8% more and a total spend of £10,893.
The North East remains the cheapest place to move home with suspected costs of £6,156.
Andrew Mason, Mortgages Director at Lloyds Bank, said: ‘The positive growth seen in house prices will increase stamp duty and also provide equity to help pay these fees, but it’s important to consider the full costs involved when going through the home moving process and make sure all bases are covered to avoid any unexpected shocks at the time.”
In a time when purchasing property has never been more expensive with the gulf between wages and house prices expanding, the news that moving home has reached record levels will no doubt deter many, including downsizers, from moving.
How will this total affect the conveyancing sector? Will rising costs deter people from moving home?
