Moving home still tops the stress level chart – beating having a baby, marriage and job interviews

52% of the nation feel moving home is one of the most stressful life events and with the additional requirements of social distancing and other pandemic based procedures, it’s just got a whole lot more stressful. When it comes to moving, 28% find it more stressful than having a baby, getting married, going to job interviews, doing a driving test. It also beats waiting for what was the biggest elephant in the room to leave until COVID-19 arrived – Brexit.

One of the reasons for this, according to new research by the home setup service Just Move In is, 44% of movers spend up to three hours just swapping their utilities over.

Just Move In reduces the stress and hassle of the home moving process by recommending the best essential services and doing the leg work for you. Freeing you up to focus on the important parts of moving, like remembering to take the kids, face masks and hand sanitiser with you.

The latest survey of home movers by Just Move In found that 52% of those asked ranked moving home at an eight or above on a scale of one to 10 when asked how stressful they found moving – with 10 being the most stressful.

When looking at the most stressful aspects of moving home itself, 49% of people found packing the most stressful part, followed by transferring your services and updating existing utility providers (27%).

With everything that needs organising for a smooth and successful home move, it comes as no surprise that transferring services and utilities ranks so highly, with 44% of movers spending over 30 minutes on the phone to each supplier. With council tax, water and sewerage, gas and electricity, TV and broadband, phone and insurance as a minimum, that’s more than three hours spent on the phone. Time that could be spent on other things – like binge watching Netflix.

On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the most stressful, how stressful was moving home?
How stressful
% of respondents
1
1%
2
2%
3
4%
4
4%
5
8%
6
10%
7
18%
8
27%
9
13%
10
12%
Rank the following on which you have found the most stressful
Life Event
% of times ranked 1st
Moving home
28%
Job Interview
21%
Driving Test
20%
Having a baby
16%
Getting Married
11%
Waiting for Brexit
5%
Thinking about moving to a new home, what was it that you found most stressful?
Task/activity
% of respondents
Packing
49%
Setting up new services (e.g. internet) in my new home and updating my address with current utility providers
27%
Organising a removal service
10%
Updating friends and family with my new address
1%
Other
13%
How much time would you typically spend calling your council, water and sewerage provider, gas and electricity provider, TV and broadband provider, phone provider and insurance providers?
Time taken
% of respondents
Less than 10 mins
8%
Between 10 and 30 mins
34%
Over 30 mins
44%
N/A as I did this online
14%

Properganda PR

National and local media coverage for property businesses. Journo quotes delivered in minutes.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Rental demand drops to six-year low

Rental demand drops to six-year low as supply improves and rental growth slows to 2.2 per cent reports Zoopla   Demand for rented homes has fallen by a fifth over the last year and is the lowest for six years. There are 15% more homes for rent than last year, boosting choice for renters UK…
Read More
Christmas Decorations - Good or Bad for Selling
Breaking News

Christmas move-in rush drives short-term rental spikes

Christmas move-in rush drives short-term rental spikes, while year-on-year affordability remains largely unchanged Year-on-year trends remain relatively stable, with most regions showing small changes in rent levels and required salaries. Short-term rental volatility is now the dominant driver of affordability shifts, with North East, Wales, South West, Yorkshire & Humberside, and parts of the Midlands…
Read More
Breaking News

Dwelly reveals the strongest rental market for current returns

The latest research from Dwelly has highlighted which pockets of the British rental market are currently providing landlords with the greatest returns, helping them combat the incoming tax hikes announced in last week’s Autumn Budget. Dwelly analysed the latest Government house price data alongside the most recent rental market figures from the ONS to identify…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

How to find out when a property was built and why it’s important to know

A leading provider of niche and specialist insurance to the home insurance market, Stanhope, has provided a step-by-step guide to finding out when a property was built and explained why it is so important for the homeowner to know its age. Matthew Ashton a Director of Stanhope said: “Knowing the property’s age is crucial for…
Read More
Breaking News

Five real estate opportunities to watch in 2026

By Daniel Austin, CEO and co-founder at ASK Partners The 2025 Autumn Budget offered limited stimulus for the housing market and, persistent headwinds such as sticky inflation, higher for longer interest rates, elevated construction costs, and slow planning processes continue to impact development viability. But there are still reasons for cautious optimism. The UK economy…
Read More
Breaking News

Autumn Budget 2025: What It Means for Buyers, Renters and Landlords

Budget headlines for the property sector: Landlords and property investors are the most directly affected, with slightly higher tax on rental income and frozen tax thresholds. Very high‑value homeowners (£2m+) face a new recurring annual charge from 2028. Renters don’t see direct tax changes, but may end up paying more in rent due to increased…
Read More