The broader value of non-essential house moves

People decide to move house for what might be called ‘abstract’ reasons

It is often said that moving house is the third-most stressful personal experience after a death within the family and divorce. While this theory might be open to debate, it is certainly true that most flits are, to varying degrees, rare - ly hassle-free.

But the idea that moving house is some - thing people will avoid unless absolute - ly necessary seems to have been blown out of the water by the results of a survey conducted on behalf of removal company Anyvan.com. It has revealed that the average residential flit in Great Britain involves a physical move of just 8.3 miles, while one in five Scots who do so actually move to a new home just 1.2 miles away. Half of those moving from a home in Edinburgh travel 7.5 miles or less – while the figure for those in Glasgow is even lower at 5.8 miles.

It seems significant that while the average mover needed 14.81 cubic metres of space to haul their possessions between homes, those moving from Edinburgh required the least at 13.1 cubic metres, the lowest in the country. Glasgow-based movers were the second-lowest with 13.32 cubic metres. This suggests either one of two things: that Scots have fewer possessions than our fellow citizens south of the Border or are much more proficient at decluttering.

Angus Elphinstone, CEO of Anyvan.com, said: “Packing up everything and moving to another part of the country can be a daunting experience and our figures revealed that over the past 12 months, almost 3,000 customers travelled more than 100 miles when they moved home.

“But while thousands decided to start a new life miles away, our research showed for most there really is no place like home.”

Although the survey does not specifically say so, one inference I can take from it is that because of the relatively short distances involved, a fair number of people – the obvious hassle excepted – actually quite like moving to a new house, just for the change of lifestyle this provides.

It is, of course, true that substantial numbers of house-movers do so out of necessity – a growing family, separation and divorce, money problems and older people “trading down” to more manageable properties are the most common causes. A growing reason – sadly, perhaps, reflecting the age – is that householders simply don’t get on with the folks next door.

But people also decide to move house for what might be called “abstract” reasons. For example, even couples without children might swap a flat for a house with a front and back door and garden, despite this leading to less liveable indoor space. Others may leave their “pre-owned” semi for a new-build property of a similar type and scale even if such a move (as is usually the case) involves additional financial commitment; they are strongly attracted to the idea of a home in pristine condition no one has ever occupied before. Others simply want a change of location just because they happen to like the new one better than the old one – nothing to do with requiring extra living space or starting a job with a new employer in another part of the country.

So if my inference is correct, this leads to a wider point. There is general agreement that a healthy property market helps fuel a buoyant economy, a principal reason being the various kinds of employment associated with each house move. Think of all the bona fide businesses – whose owners and employees all play their respective taxes – that have evolved on the back of housing transactions.

Helping to keep the property market healthy are the non-essential moves as described above. And so it should be incumbent on our legislators to do everything possible not to discourage this activity because of the benefits it brings. If they could see beyond the end of their noses it might become clear that making it easier to move house – even for those who do not particularly need to – will not only help maintain employment levels, but by increasing the level of sales, actually enhance government coffers in terms of tax take.

David Alexander is MD of DJ Alexander