Stairlift or Move to a Bungalow? How to Make the Right Decision

A stairlift: A new straight stairlift typically starts from around £1,650 to £2,500 installed, depending on the brand, and reconditioned straight lifts from around £1,250. A curved model usually costs £3,500 to £8,000 or more. Electricity costs very little, and an annual service typically costs £85 to £200. Most buyers with a long-term illness or disability can also buy VAT-free, which cuts the price by 20%.

Moving house: Costs depend enormously on location, but buying and selling involves estate agent fees (typically 1 to 3 percent of the sale price), solicitor fees (often £1,500 to £3,000), stamp duty (if the new property is over the threshold), survey fees, removal costs, and potentially the price premium of a bungalow over a comparable house in the same area. In many UK towns and cities, bungalows command a significant premium over houses of similar floor area - often 10 to 20 percent more - because demand for single-storey properties consistently outstrips supply.

In most cases, the financial cost of moving is dramatically higher than the cost of a stairlift. See stairlift prices by brand and curved stairlift costs for more detail.

The financial comparison strongly favours the stairlift in most cases. But the financial case is not the whole picture. Some questions worth thinking through honestly:

• Do you want to stay in your current home long-term? If the answer is yes, a stairlift is the most straightforward path. If the current home has multiple other accessibility barriers (no downstairs bathroom, narrow doorways, awkward layout), a move to a purpose-built or newly built bungalow might address all of them together.
• Is the neighbourhood important to you? Moving to a single-storey property often means moving to a different street, area, or even town. Proximity to family, friends, a GP, and familiar shops and services matters enormously in later life. A stairlift keeps you in your community.
• Is the current home otherwise suitable? A stairlift solves the stairs. If there are other significant mobility barriers in the current home, those also need addressing - and the cumulative cost of multiple adaptations might begin to compare more favourably to a suitable move.

The overwhelming majority of people who face this choice opt for the stairlift rather than moving. The financial case is usually decisive on its own. But beyond finances, most people prefer to remain in a home they know and a community they are part of. The disruption, emotional cost, and uncertainty of a house move in later life is significant in a way that is often underestimated before going through it.

Healthcare professionals and occupational therapists who regularly make these assessments observe that people who adapt their homes generally cope better with maintaining independence than those who move, particularly when the move involves leaving a familiar neighbourhood. The comfort and security of a known environment is a genuine factor in wellbeing.

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Despite the above, there are situations where moving genuinely makes more sense:

• The current home has multiple significant accessibility barriers (no downstairs WC, narrow doorways, steep inaccessible entrance steps) that would collectively cost as much to adapt as a move would cost
• A suitable purpose-built or accessible property is available in the same area or near family
• The person wants to downsize for other reasons and the accessibility issue is additional motivation rather than the sole driver
• The property is too large to manage practically

These are real considerations. The point is not that moving is always wrong - it is that the cost and disruption of moving are often significantly underestimated, while the cost and disruption of a stairlift are often overestimated.

If you are genuinely undecided, an occupational therapist assessment is the most useful starting point. An OT will assess the specific mobility challenges in the current home, advise on what adaptations are needed, and give a professional view on whether the property can be made genuinely suitable. This is usually available through your GP or local council.

A stairlift home survey, which is free and without obligation, tells you exactly what a stairlift would cost for your specific staircase. Having an actual number rather than a guess makes the comparison with moving concrete and real. See what happens at a stairlift home survey.