Stairlift or Moving Home - Which Makes More Sense?

When the stairs become difficult, many people assume the only option is to sell up and move to a bungalow. But when you look at the real costs and the emotional toll, a stairlift almost always makes more sense. Here is why.

The true cost of moving home in Scotland

Moving house is expensive. Even before you factor in the price difference between your current home and a bungalow, the process itself carries significant costs. Estate agent fees typically run between 1% and 2% of the sale price. Solicitor and conveyancing fees add another £1,000 to £2,000. Then there is the cost of a home report (required by law in Scotland), removals, and any redecoration or repairs needed to sell your current property.

For a typical Scottish home worth £180,000, the transaction costs alone can easily reach £5,000 to £8,000 - before you have even looked at the price of the new property. And bungalows, because of their popularity with older buyers, often carry a premium over similarly sized houses in the same area.

What a stairlift actually costs

A reconditioned straight stairlift starts from £995. A new straight stairlift starts from £1,895. Even a custom-built curved stairlift for stairs with bends typically costs from £3,495. See our full stairlift cost guide for a detailed breakdown.

That means the cost of a stairlift is often less than just the estate agent fees on a house sale, let alone the total cost of moving.

The emotional cost people forget

Money aside, there is a real emotional toll to leaving a home you have lived in for decades. The neighbours you know, the garden you have tended, the rooms where your children and grandchildren grew up - these things matter enormously. Many of our customers tell us the single biggest relief about getting a stairlift is knowing they do not have to leave.

For families, there is also the stress of helping an elderly parent through a house sale, viewings, and a move. A stairlift takes all of that off the table.

When moving does make sense

We are not saying a stairlift is always the right answer. If your home has other significant accessibility problems beyond the stairs, or if you are already considering sheltered housing or supported accommodation, a move might genuinely be the better option.

But if the stairs are the main barrier to staying in your home - and they usually are - a stairlift solves the problem at a fraction of the cost, with none of the upheaval.

A stairlift does not have to be permanent

One thing many people do not realise is that a stairlift can be removed just as easily as it was installed. If circumstances change - you recover from surgery, or you do eventually decide to move - the stairlift comes out with no lasting damage to your stairs. You can even consider our rental option if you think you might only need it for a few months.