Costs of moving home UK: what you'll pay to buy and sell

The costs of moving home UK buyers and sellers face in 2026 typically add up to £13,000-£15,000 combined, when buying and selling at the average UK house price of around £292,000. This guide covers every cost involved in a move, not just removals - including how your choice of moving home mortgages affects the total you'll pay.

The tables below set out who typically pays what, so you can see the full picture before you commit to a move.

Notice that buyers carry most of the transaction costs - stamp duty, survey and mortgage fees all fall on the buying side - while sellers mainly pay estate agent fees and their own conveyancing bill. If you're doing both at once, moving up the ladder, you're covering both columns.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) applies in England and Northern Ireland whenever you buy a residential property above a set threshold. From 1 April 2025, the standard nil-rate threshold reverted to £125,000, with rates stepping up in bands above that. You can check current thresholds directly on HMRC's stamp duty guidance.

Standard home mover rates

For most home movers buying a residential property in England or Northern Ireland, the standard rates from April 2025 are as follows.

First-time buyer relief - threshold now £300,000

First-time buyers get relief on stamp duty, but this relief was reduced alongside the April 2025 changes. The nil-rate threshold for first-time buyers dropped from £425,000 to £300,000, meaning many first-time buyers in higher-priced areas now pay stamp duty where they previously wouldn't have. See our dedicated guide to first-time buyer stamp duty relief for a full breakdown of eligibility and savings.

As a worked example, on a property priced at £320,000, a first-time buyer would pay around £1,000 in stamp duty, while a home mover who has owned property before would pay around £6,500 on the same purchase - the relief still makes a meaningful difference, just from a lower starting point than before.

Scotland (LBTT) and Wales (LTT)

Scotland and Wales run their own property transaction taxes, with different thresholds to England and Northern Ireland. Always confirm current figures with Revenue Scotland or the Welsh Revenue Authority before you budget, as these are separate from HMRC's SDLT system.

Second homes and buy to let - the 3% surcharge

If you're buying a second home, or an additional property such as a buy to let, an extra 3% surcharge applies on top of the standard rates in England and Northern Ireland, with similar surcharges in Scotland and Wales. This can add a substantial amount to the tax bill, so it's worth factoring in early if you'll temporarily own two properties during your move.

Remember that if you're porting your existing deal, stamp duty still applies in the same way as a new mortgage would - porting changes your lender relationship and mortgage terms, not your tax liability.

Conveyancing fees cover the legal work involved in transferring ownership of a property. They're made up of two separate elements: the solicitor's own fee for their time and expertise, and disbursements - third-party costs the solicitor pays on your behalf, such as searches and registration fees.

As a buyer, you'll typically pay £850-£1,900 in solicitor fees plus £300-£700 in disbursements. As a seller, conveyancing is usually cheaper - around £600-£1,300 in solicitor fees plus £50-£150 in disbursements, since there are fewer searches to run.

What disbursements include

Disbursements can look like a confusing list of small charges, but each one serves a specific purpose in protecting you as a buyer.

Leasehold properties cost more

If you're buying or selling a leasehold property, expect to pay an additional £200-£400 in conveyancing fees. This covers the extra legal work involved in reviewing the lease, liaising with the freeholder or managing agent, and checking service charge and ground rent information - a step that's often missed out of moving-cost estimates but catches many leasehold buyers by surprise.

If your sale falls through, conveyancing fees you've already paid for - searches run and legal time spent - are usually non-refundable. This typically means losing £300-£600, even though the transaction never completed, so it's worth factoring this risk into your budget from the outset.

Mortgage arrangement fees - rate vs fee trade-off

Most mortgage deals come with an arrangement fee, typically ranging from £0 to £2,000. Lenders often offer a choice: a lower rate with a higher fee, or a higher rate with little or no fee. Which works out cheaper depends on your mortgage balance and how long you'll keep the deal, so it isn't always obvious from the headline numbers alone.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage or any other debt secured on it, so it's worth taking the time to understand the full cost of a deal rather than choosing on rate alone. A mortgage advisor can work out the true cost of each option across its full term, and help you compare how much you can borrow when moving home against what each deal will actually cost you. See our guide to moving home mortgages to compare your options.

Mortgage valuation fee

Lenders need to value the property before releasing funds, and this can cost anywhere from £150 to £1,500 depending on the lender and property value. Many lenders now offer valuations at no extra cost as part of their mortgage products, so it's worth asking your advisor which deals include this.

Early repayment charges (ERCs)

If you're still within a fixed or discounted deal period and need to leave it early, most lenders charge an early repayment charge - typically 1-5% of your outstanding balance. This can add up to a significant sum on a large mortgage.

Porting your mortgage to your new property, rather than taking out a new deal, can help you avoid an early repayment charge altogether, provided your current lender agrees to the transfer and you still meet their criteria. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage, so speak to an advisor before deciding whether porting, remortgaging, or a new deal makes the most sense for your circumstances.

Broker fees

Some advisors charge a broker fee, typically in the range of £0-£500, while others don't charge you directly. Always ask your advisor to confirm any fees upfront in writing before you proceed with an application.

It's worth being clear on one distinction competitors often blur: a mortgage valuation is not a survey. A valuation is carried out for the lender's benefit, to confirm the property is worth what you're paying for it - it doesn't check the condition of the building and offers you very little protection as a buyer. A survey, by contrast, is a report you commission for yourself, inspecting the property's condition in varying levels of detail.

For most standard properties, a RICS HomeBuyer Report (Level 2) is a sensible minimum. Older, unusual, or larger properties usually warrant a full Building Survey.

Traditional estate agents typically charge 1-3% of the sale price, inclusive of VAT, with the average sitting around 1.42% in 2026. On a property selling at the UK average of £292,000, that works out to roughly £4,150.

Fixed-fee online agents offer an alternative, usually charging £500-£1,500 upfront regardless of sale price. This can work out considerably cheaper on higher-value properties, but it's worth weighing against the level of service, local market knowledge, and viewings support you'd get from a traditional high-street agent.

Fees are also affected by whether you agree sole agency (one agent, usually a lower percentage) or multi-agency (several agents competing, usually a higher percentage). Sole agency is generally cheaper but relies on one agent working hard to sell your home.

Removal costs scale with the size of your home and how much help you need. A professional removal firm will typically charge based on property size, distance, and access at both ends.

Add-ons can increase the total: a full packing service typically costs an extra £250-£700, storage runs £50-£200 per week if there's a gap between moves, and specialist items like pianos or artwork may attract additional charges. At the budget end, hiring a van and doing it yourself typically costs £100-£300, though this depends on how much help you can arrange from friends or family.

Beyond the headline costs, several smaller expenses tend to catch home movers by surprise. None of these are huge on their own, but they add up quickly if you haven't budgeted for them.

• Mail redirection - Royal Mail charges around £39.50 for a 3-month redirect and £60.50 for 12 months
• Home insurance - arrange buildings cover from the point of exchange, not completion, as you're legally on the hook from exchange onwards
• Utility connection fees - setting up gas, electricity, water, and broadband at your new address
• Council tax overlap - if your completion date and move-out date differ, you could briefly be liable for council tax on two properties
• Temporary storage - if there's a chain delay between selling and buying
• Parking permits or suspensions - reserving a bay for the removal van can cost £50-£200 in cities
• Boiler service or gas safety certificate - if the seller hasn't already provided one
• Immediate repairs or cosmetic work - before you move in

If you're feeling overwhelmed by the number of costs stacking up during a move, MoneyHelper offers free, independent guidance on budgeting for a house move. You can reach them at moneyhelper.org.uk or on 0800 138 7777.

Knowing when each cost falls due helps you plan your cash flow through a move, rather than being caught out by a bill you didn't see coming. Getting a mortgage in principle before house hunting to speed up your timeline also means you'll know your borrowing position before the first costs, like your survey, fall due. The timeline below shows the typical order in which moving costs arrive.

Not every cost of moving is fixed. Making a few smart choices early can meaningfully reduce your total spend. If you already have a mortgage and are simply moving house, porting your mortgage to the new property can help you avoid an early repayment charge altogether, rather than paying to exit your current deal and taking out a new one. Here are the changes that make the biggest difference to your total moving costs.