Removal prices rocketed over three years but will they keep rising?
The cost of a move has risen to nearly £10,000, of which £1,332 has been spent on moves alone, new figures show.
The average cost of a move is £9,479, according to CompareMyMove, which of course excludes the price of the property, but includes brokerage fees, moving costs and lawyers’ fees.
The average cost was calculated using the highest and lowest quotes customers received from CompareMyMove’s moving partners listed on its website, along with the price they actually paid.
The data was collected from a total of 4,351 website users between 2019 and 2022.
The cost of a move has risen to nearly £10,000, of which £1,332 has been spent on moves, new figures show
CompareMyMove believes that the total cost of moving will continue to rise. David Sayce, of CompareMyMove, said: ”Moving costs will become more and more of an issue when relocating.’
It predicts future increases using the percentage increases already observed over the past four years.
It said the average mover spent £848.02 on moves in 2019, which is a 66.83 per cent increase on last year’s £1,332.03.
Extrapolating that into the future, however, has produced some eye-watering predictions that many may question. For example, it said the cost of relocation could rise from an average of £1,583.31 in the East of England last year to £5,651.85.
However, much of the rapid rise in the price of moving into 2022 was due to the spike in purchases during Covid, aided by the stamp duty holiday.
A wall of demand met limited supply and drove prices up. Real estate transactions have dropped significantly since then, and movers report that costs are falling and movers are happy to negotiate.
| The cost of buying a house | Average price |
|---|---|
| Stamp duty | £1,350 |
| Real estate experts | £500 |
| Transport | £1,320 |
| Valuation costs | £320 |
| Total: | £3,490 |
| The cost of selling a house | Average price |
| Estate agents | £3,268 |
| Transport | £1,270 |
| EPC | £85 |
| Total: | £4,623 |
| General moving costs | Average price |
| Moving company | £1,332.03 |
| Mail redirection | £33.99 |
| Total: | £1,366.02 |
| Total average price: | £9,479.00 |
Many moving company costs have increased since 2019, including higher fuel costs and wages. However, fuel prices have fallen since the peak of the pandemic.
The latest inflation figures show a CPI of 8.7 per cent, down 10.1 per cent, although still four times the Bank of England’s target of 2 per cent.
The pandemic has sent a wave of people from urban areas to rural areas following successive lockdowns amid the so-called ‘race for space’ in the housing market.
It resulted in an unprecedented demand for moving companies, with some profit as companies were able to charge higher than normal prices.
The number of housing transactions has fallen since then, but picked up again at the beginning of this year. Government figures estimate the number of housing transactions in March 2023 at 94,870, 14 percent lower than March 2022 and 26 percent higher than February 2023.
| Region | 2019 costs | 2022 cost | Percent increase | Expected costs in 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East of England | £692.68 | £1,583.31 | 128.6% | £5,651.85 |
| East Midlands | £792.68 | £1,562.36 | 97.1% | £4,622.19 |
| South West | £861.60 | £1,543.81 | 79.2% | £3,544.98 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | £741.23 | £1,234.88 | 66.6% | £2,883.72 |
| Northeast | £793.56 | £1,297.13 | 63.5% | £2,867.69 |
| London | £895.06 | £1,282.50 | 43.2% | £3,752.62 |
| Scotland | £785.46 | £1,122.89 | 43% | £3,393.48 |
| Southeast | £1,095.09 | £1,525.31 | 39.3% | £2,537.60 |
| Wales | £930.61 | £1,213.28 | 30.4% | £2,616.58 |
| West Midlands | £974.86 | £1,234.42 | 26.6% | £2,274.10 |
| North West | £809.85 | £917.83 | 13.3% | £1,182.27 |
| Source: CompareMyMove |
Housing transactions have fallen since peaking during the pandemic
The type and size of a home will of course affect moving costs. The CompareMyMove study found that the cost of a one-bedroom move has increased the most from £323.52 in 2019 to £608.80 in 2022. It’s an 88.2 per cent increase from 2019.
The figures show that two-bedroom moves saw the least change in price, with a 34.6 per cent increase from £755.47 to £1,017.06.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, five-bedroom moves were the most expensive in 2022, up 55.9 per cent from £1,858.41 in 2019 to £2,897.25 in 2022.
| Move size | Cost 2019 | 2022 Cost | Percent increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bed | £323.52 | £608.80 | 88.20% |
| 2 bed | £755.47 | £1,017.06 | 34.60% |
| 3 bed | £1,067.08 | £1,466.20 | 37.40% |
| 4 bed | £1,258 | £2,079.88 | 65.30% |
| 5 bed | £1,858.41 | £2,897.25 | 55.90% |
| Source: CompareMyMove | |||
How to reduce the cost of moving
However, there are ways to negotiate the cost of moving, including choosing a quieter time of the week to move home when demand for moving companies is lower.
Charles Rickards, of moving company Aussie Man & Van, said: ‘The cost of hiring a moving company has inevitably risen along with everything else, thanks to rising inflation and higher labor costs.
However, it is worth paying for a professional service from well-trained staff. Be careful not to go with a disreputable company that will let you down at the last minute because they seem “cheaper” as the ensuing cost of a bad move could be disastrous. Avoid comparison websites; use a ‘real’ company and deal directly with them, rather than a middleman.
“Perhaps there are ways movers can lower the price, such as moving at a quieter time of the week, say Monday or Tuesday, rather than Friday. Find a BAR member, ask friends for recommendations, and read Trustpilot and Google reviews.
‘Anyone who is tempted to do the move themselves in order to ‘save’ costs should think carefully about what is involved. Moving is hard work and it is always worth calling in the professionals. You can cut costs by doing your own packaging, but again, there is a risk involved with this. Our movers are trained to pack carefully and efficiently.’
