The Cost of Moving House in Bristol
Over the past few years, Bristol, as a city, has been on a bit of a hot streak. Already one of the UK’s most popular tourist destinations; since being selected as one of the world’s top ten cities by international travel publishers Dorling Kindersley in 2009, Bristol has won a slew of awards. Including being voted the Best City in Britain for two years, 2014 and 2017 respectively, and winning the EU’s Green Capital Award in 2015.
With an economy built on creative media, electronic technology and aerospace, Bristol is progressive and diverse, not just in its job market, but in its culture, celebrating a vibrant arts scene and a rich heritage.
With all that said, it’s no wonder that Bristol is becoming the UK’s latest property hotspot. In January 2017, Bristol was ranked sixth in the country for how swiftly properties exchange hands. With the average house being snapped up in just 34 days, Bristol has rapidly become one of the fastest moving property markets in the UK. To put that in perspective, the average house across the rest of the UK takes over 47 days to exchange hands.
House prices in Bristol are rising faster than in London with the market being one of the fastest growing in Europe. Average property prices in Bristol rose by 15.8% in comparison to last year. Meaning the city ranks third for house price growth in across Europe, behind only Budapest and Oslo, and twentieth for house price growth globally. Although, while house prices in Bristol are rising faster than in London, they are still far lower than the capital’s average.
New research conducted by property website Zoopla found that the average house in Bristol was being sold for around £309,807.
But moving house comes with a whole host of other costs outside of the original asking price, and it’s important to consider these within your budget. So, if you’re looking to move to, or within Bristol, then how much will it cost?
The first thing to consider is the conveyancing fee. Which is when you hire a solicitor to act for you when buying or selling a property, and will, on average, cost between £500 and £1,500 (including VAT at 20%) depending on the type of property you are buying. They can also conduct local searches, which will cost you between £250 and £300. Although if you’re selling a house at the same time, you may be able to negotiate a package deal with the solicitor.
Whilst some sellers may choose to advertise independently, estate agents drastically increase your house’s chance of being seen by the most buyers. And selling houses is, after all, a numbers game. That said, keep in mind that agents work on commission, and you can expect them to charge between 1% to 3% of the price of your house sale plus VAT of the agreed selling price for your home, depending on the type of contract you opt for.
Alongside an agency fee, you’ll also have to pay stamp duty, the tax payable to the government for changing the documents that specify who owns a particular property. You can work out an estimate of how much you’ll need to pay on the Government Tax site page.
The next thing you’ll have to cough up for is the surveyor’s fee. You can pay anything from £250 to £600 plus for different surveys, which although all check for structural issues with your property, will differ in detail dependent on price. The most basic – and cheapest – is called a home condition survey. Paying for a good survey could save you money on repairs further down the line.
Finally, comes the cost of the actual move, primarily, the removal costs. Although the cost will differ based on a number of factors, including the size of the house and the removals company, a recent survey found that the average 3-bed move costs £1,192.67, plus additional charges for packing materials, special care items and access issues. Many removals company offer a free home removal survey to provide an estimate of the potential costs.
If you’re selling your house in Bristol and need Bristol’s favourite removal company to help you move to your new property, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 0117 287 2127.
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