Cost of moving house nears £10,000

Cost of moving house nears £10,000

Moving home now costs an average £9,486, compared with £2,925 in 1996, according to website propertyfinder.com

The largest outlay is stamp duty, with the average homebuyer facing a £5,009 bill. Estate agent fees typically cost more than £3,027, while solicitors' fees account for around £1,000. Removal costs come in at around £450.

Warren Bright, chief executive officer of propertyfinder.com, said the growing cost of moving was having an adverse effect on the fluidity of the property market, and consequently pushing up prices.

"The high cost of moving home has definitely contributed to the current supply shortage in the housing market. In the past, when costs were low, there was little to prevent people from making a number of small steps up the housing ladder.

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"Now that transaction costs, and especially stamp duty, are prohibitive, people are more reluctant to move, or are making fewer, bigger jumps up the ladder," he said.

Meanwhile, a separate report published today by property information site Hometrack said that house prices across the country rose by 1.8% in March, the sharpest increase since 2002, fuelled by a shortage of properties coming on to the market.