Summer has long been the UK’s peak season for moving house, with demand—and prices—both reaching annual highs. In 2023, the cost of a summer move climbed by 10.9% from spring, peaking at £1,165.52. This year, however, the surge has been even sharper.
Compare My Move has found that removal costs have risen a striking 18% from spring. As of summer 2024, the price tag for moving has soared to £1,324.17, setting a new record and adding a fresh layer of financial pressure for home movers nationwide.
This report will explore the reasons behind the observed increase. Below is a brief overview of the key factors we’ll be covering:
Increased Demand: The number of people moving house has increased up 1.3% from 2023’s peak, this rise in demand is going to increase pressure on moving companies and contribute to significant price increases.
General Election: Historically, house prices tend to rise in the 12 months after a general election, an anticipated demand will come with a more stable housing market, with the increasing house prices adding to an increased moving cost.
Q2 Price Dip: Q2 of 2024 saw prices dip by –1.6%, which, alongside a large increase in demand, set the stage for significant price rises in Q3 of 2024.
Here is a table that illustrates the price increase we have seen this summer.
| Quarter | Removals Cost | Percentage Change |
| Q1, 2023 | £1,013.77 | |
| Q2, 2023 | £1,051.40 | 3.7% |
| Q3, 2023 | £1,165.52 | 10.9% |
| Q4, 2023 | £1,115.60 | -4.3% |
| Q1, 2024 | £1,140.32 | 2.2% |
| Q2, 2024 | £1,121.92 | -1.6% |
| Q3, 2024 | £1,324.17 | 18.0% |
Why Have Moving Costs Risen?
But what’s driving this significant rise in removal costs? To understand, we need to examine some key external factors, starting with the surging demand for removals across the UK this year. Quarter 3 saw the highest number of people moving in 2024, marking a 1.3% increase over the peak levels of 2023. The graph below highlights this shifting trend in moving house across the UK.
Graph: The Percentage Rise in House Moves from Quarter to Quarter
To understand the 18% rise in removal costs seen in Q3 this year, it’s essential to look at the changes in mover numbers from Q2. Notably, the increase between Q2 and Q3 in 2024 is smaller than the rise we saw during the same period last year. However, this trend doesn’t align with the sharp increase in removal costs shown above. In fact, Q2 of this year saw a -1.6% dip in prices compared to Q1—a drop that may explain the more dramatic price jump into Q3.
The demand in Q2 2024 surged 20% compared to Q2 2023, hinting that Q3 demand would likely follow suit. With Q2 prices briefly softening to £1,121.92, there was room for removal costs to rise significantly to meet the anticipated demand spike in Q3.
The timing of the General Election on July 4th would have also influenced the UK’s rising moving costs. Elections often bring economic uncertainty, especially when there’s a change in government. According to a Compare My Move study, house prices typically see an average increase of 4.6% following an election, and this anticipated rise likely encouraged more people to invest in property post-election, sparking a surge in moving demand.
With historical data pointing to this predictable uptick in housing activity, it’s likely that removal companies anticipated higher demand and adjusted their prices accordingly, pushing the average moving costs to the peak we have seen.
What Can We Expect for the Rest of 2024
We asked Compare My Move’s founder and managing director Dave Sayce what we can expect from moving costs and moving trends after Rachel Reeve’s October budget.
Sayce said:
“Summer has long been the UK’s favourite season for moving, but as the days shorten and holidays approach, we expect a seasonal decline in moves. The real question, however, is how sharp that decline will be.
In 2023, the number of movers in Q4 dropped to nearly the same levels seen in Q2, with only a 4.5% difference between the two. This year, Q2 moving numbers are significantly higher than last year’s, which suggests we could see a lot more people moving between October and December than we saw in 2023.
However, we also need to consider the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s October budget, which will impact moving costs and trends for the remainder of the year. A key factor of the budget was the planned end of stamp duty relief in March 2025. This change means homeowners will soon face stamp duty on purchases over £125,000, down from the current £250,000 threshold. As a result, we may see an increase in moves toward the end of this year and early next year as people look to benefit from the current relief.
With demand likely to carry into Q4, it wouldn’t be surprising to see moving costs hold steady or even rise above Q3’s peak levels. If we do see a price drop this Q4, as we did last year, I would expect it to be very slight.”
One Response
You didn’t think to talk to anybody actually in the moving industry for this piece?
You’re not wrong that rates have increased but you’ve missed nearly all the reasons for it!
Capacity has reduced, and costs have risen.
Many movers have chosen to shut. The last fifteen to twenty years have seen the stress of short notice bookings and repeated lack of being able to plan ahead cause them to finally give up. When Conveyancers and agents promote stupidly short exchange to completion timescales it completely f&£ks up the ability to run a professional moving co pant properly
The moving industry is in the same recruitment crisis that has been developing for over a decade. There are, quite simply fewer professional removalists.
This is putting pressure on firms to raise salaries for the employees they have.
Costs have risen by extreme amounts. Movers have seen insurance rises of 40% in many instances. HGV driver salaries are up by 50% in 3 years. With rest of employees salaries having to rise to match.
The recruitment crisis by the way is Conveyancers fault. You are making an enjoyable job miserable. How hard do you think it is retaining employees when they never know if they’ll be home for 9pm or 5pm. It’s horrific stress, every day. Just because you can’t do your jobs properly. In a young industry many fathers get fed up missing kids bedtime. And have wives that soon get fed up with never knowing what time their husband will be home.
Materials costs as well as fleet maintenance costs have risen rapidly.
The you quite simply have the damage wrought by 2 years of (relative) flat-lined housing activity. Losses have been considerable. Combined with the above facts, rates have to rise to make back losses incurred as quickly as possible.
If you’re going to write an article postulating on why removals costs have Increased rapidly, make an effort to find out why.
A single digit increase year over year in market activity doesn’t register.