British people spend on average almost £30,000 moving house in a lifetime, while Londoners fork out two and a half times more, new research shows.

A single move in London costs £20,739 compared to £8,264 elsewhere in the UK which means that the average Londoner spends £75,972 in a lifetime of moves while elsewhere it is £28,952.

The research from home services company Really Moving also shows that cost of a home move is equivalent to 31% of average annual national earnings, rising to 61% for Londoners.

When it comes to where the money goes the research shows that estate agent fees are 80% higher than Stamp Duty for the majority of movers and first time buyers have considerably lower moving costs.

It is mainly higher Stamp Duty that leads to a higher cost of moving in London as a result of higher property costs but other costs such as conveyancing and surveys are also higher in the capital city.

The greatest cost facing the typical UK home mover, based on an average national property value of £228,000, is estate agent fees costing £4,104, followed by Stamp Duty Tax, costing £2,280. A further £805 is spent on conveyancing for the sale and purchase, £355 on a Homebuyer's Report survey and £60 on an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).

The total cost of a home move is equivalent to 31% of average annual national earnings, rising to 61% for people moving in London, who usually fall within the higher 3% Stamp Duty Tax bracket. At the other end of the spectrum, home move costs in Northern Ireland are equivalent to 22% of average earnings.

Total moving costs for first time buyers are substantially lower at £3,700, since they are not required to pay for estate agency fees, conveyancing on a sale or an EPC. They may also save considerably on removals having a lesser volume of possessions to move.

‘Taking a chunk of equity out of your sale to cover the costs of a move is no longer a viable option for many sellers who need to keep hold of their existing equity in order to secure the best possible mortgage rate on their new home. As a result, buyers are more prepared to negotiate hard with estate agents over fees and shop around for the best conveyancing and removals quotes to keep costs as low as possible,’ said Rosemary Rogers, direct of Really Moving.

The company has launched a Moving Cost Calculator which adds estimated costs for conveyancing, removals, estate agent fees, Stamp Duty, surveys and energy certificates.