Last reviewed: 12 June 2026.
Key takeaways
- Moving home typically costs £10,000-£25,000+ once stamp duty, agent fees, conveyancing and removals are counted, before any price difference on the new property.
- A stairlift costs £1,500-£10,000 once, and most other ageing-in-place adaptations are cheaper still.
- Bungalows carry a price premium in most UK regions because demand from downsizers outstrips supply.
- The right answer is often staged: adapt now, reassess in a few years with better information.
When stairs become the problem, families tend to jump to one of two conclusions: “we need a stairlift” or “it is time for a bungalow.” Both can be right. But the comparison deserves real numbers, because the cost gap is much larger than most people assume.
What moving actually costs
Selling and buying involves estate agent fees (typically 1-1.5% plus VAT), conveyancing on both transactions, surveys, removals, and stamp duty on the purchase. On a £300,000 sale-and-buy that stack routinely lands between £10,000 and £25,000 before a single curtain is hung. Add the bungalow premium: single-storey homes in most regions cost more per square metre than equivalent houses, so downsizers frequently get less space for the same money. None of this counts the weeks of effort, or leaving neighbours, GP, and support networks that become more valuable with age, not less.
What staying and adapting costs
A straight stairlift from £1,500; curved from £3,500 (full pricing index). Grab rails, bathing adaptations and ramps are typically hundreds, not thousands, and a Disabled Facilities Grant can cover up to £30,000 of adaptations in England (£36,000 Wales) for eligible households, with VAT exemption on top. Even a worst-case curved stairlift plus a wet room usually totals a fraction of one house move. The related comparison with residential care is even starker: see care home cost vs home adaptation.
When moving genuinely wins
- The home has more fundamental problems than stairs: cold, disrepair, isolation, or a garden that has become a burden.
- The staircase cannot take a lift and a through-floor lift will not fit either (rare; check can a stairlift be fitted to any stairs?).
- You want to release equity or move closer to family anyway; the stairs are the prompt, not the reason.
- A progressive condition will soon need full single-level living regardless: an OT assessment helps judge this honestly.
A sensible way to decide
Get the free stairlift survey and a written quote (start here), get a current valuation on the house, and put the two numbers side by side with a five-year view. Many families find the stairlift buys years of staying put for a twentieth of the cost of moving, and the decision about a bungalow can be made later, without a crisis driving it. For talking the options through with a parent, see how to raise the stairlift conversation.
Prices are approximate, based on our own research as of June 2026. This article is general information, not financial or medical advice, and was written in accordance with our editorial policy.
