While obtaining a mortgage makes moving home a stressful experience, finding and securing a property is more anxiety-inducing to 46% of movers.
That is according to a new survey by Online Mortgage Advisor, which questioned 1,300 British homemovers who have reached completion.
More than half (64%) of homemovers claimed that the process of moving home was their most stressful experience of the past five years.
Respondents were asked to indicate the triggers of stress they experienced when moving home, and their answers were organised into 10 different categories.
The top five most commonly cited categories are as follows:
- Finding and securing a property – 46%
- Selling their own property – 36%
- Waiting for the chain to complete – 34%
- Completing and removals – 21%
- Solicitors/conveyancing – 14%
Issues related to these categories led to 69% of homemovers putting off a future move, due to the increased levels of stress and anxiety expected.
What’s more, just 8% of respondents said that moving did not have an impact on their stress and anxiety levels. Meanwhile, 39% of people described the stress as extreme.
Pete Mugleston, managing director of Online Mortgage Advisor, explains: “This has made us stop and think. We’re regularly thinking about how we can make the process of obtaining a mortgage smoother for our customers. But that’s only one small part of the whole experience for homemovers and first-time buyers.”
“We should be giving more consideration to how we can add value outside of helping customers find the right financial advice. My personal struggles with anxiety in the past, and the things that helped resolve them, made teaming up with Jamie Smart a natural starting point.”
He concludes: “We will endeavour to build on this inside and outside our wellbeing portal as time goes on.”
