Survey reveals unexpected costs impacting house movers pockets and their wellbeing

A Yougov survey shows that people are spending on average £10,454 more on their house move than they had budgeted.

Over 4,000 people across Britain were surveyed at different points over the last six months to gauge the impact of unforeseen costs.

And, just under half (44%) of those who had moved home in the past two years had suffered from unexpected costs.

In the latest survey, carried out last week, 50% of people who have moved have experienced unforeseen costs of up to £5,000, while 18% spent between £5,000 to £9,999, and 19% spent £10,000 to £19,999 extra.

Impact of these costs are not just financial

A smaller percentage (5%) paid up to £40,000 while the same percentage of people paid over £40,000.

These unexpected costs when moving included increased childcare, increased council tax, extra carer costs and extra travel costs.

31% of people had increased furniture costs, 25% had unexpected extra mortgage costs, while 25% had unforeseen overhead costs.

The Yougov survey, commissioned by Persona Homes, also revealed that the impact of these costs were not just financial, but both emotional and mental.

29% of these recent movers said they had money worries during the move; 21% had mental health concerns; 33% suffered from lack of sleep, 19% said they had arguments with their partners, while 9% said it impacted their work.

Yougov carried out the surveys in October 2022 and March 2023.

The trend of growing costs seen over the past year or so has led to one housebuilder developing a lifestyle calculator, along with wider more pastoral support to help people as they move into their homes.

Range of support, advice and help for buyers

Persona Homes has created a calculator which does a deep dive into peoples’ lifestyles to ensure they are aware of all the costs associated with moving, so they are able to enjoy their lifestyle once they’re in their new home.

The calculator looks at everything from child care costs, spend on cars and life insurance through to social experiences, TV and broadband spend, and a whole lot in between.

The aim is to show people, prior to buying a house, how much they are spending and whether they will be stretched or not if they move.

To help tackle some of the well-being and mental health issues highlighted in the Yougov survey, Persona Homes are also offering pastoral support.

Personify, which you can access when you reserve a home, offers a range of support, advice and help for buyers.

More and more people wanting to move

They include, expert financial and welfare advice, debt advice, 24/7 access to counselling services and guaranteed access to 24/7 private GP services.

Will Gardner, executive director at Persona Homes, said: “The financial and emotional pressures on people moving home is growing, as we can see by these surveys. And they are likely to get worse before they get better given the current cost of living crisis.

“Despite these issues we are seeing more and more people wanting to move. And, there are lots of good websites and advisors out there with supporting information on the costs associated with moving home, like stamp duty, legal costs, etc. But there aren’t many, if any, supporting buyers to help realise these potential unforeseen costs, and the wider pressures they bring.

“We wanted to ensure our customers were fully aware of these potential costs, which is why we launched the lifestyle calculator and the wider support that Personify offers.”