August Isn’t What It Used to Be for Removers

For years, August was seen as that golden month for removers; when every van was booked solidly. The month sees families eager to move before the new academic year, school holidays, drier weather, more sunlight and everyone feeling more energised… these are just some of the reasons why August is favoured for a house move. Removers often relied on a busy August to carry momentum during quieter months.

The problem is – the landscape has shifted. While August remains a busy month, it’s no longer that super-peak period that it once was. We speak to removal firms all the time now about how it’s not the golden goose of the removal calendar. The proof is in the pudding; in August 2024, we observed 82,077 exchanges. This fell to 79,490 in August 2025.

September 2025 saw more exchanges than August at 81,858. The same for October 2025, which recorded 92,622. Even November experienced more exchanges than August, at 87,021, and December too, at 82,961.

Why has demand in August reduced?

All those advantages of why homemovers want to move in August remain, but what the mover is somewhat oblivious to is that transactions are taking longer. The average time it takes for an agent to sell a property is now 79 days on average. Add to this the time it takes for conveyancers to do the legal work, and that’s a further 132 days on average. That’s 211 days from listing a property to exchanging, or 7 (long) months.

Movers are very much naïve about these timescales. Once Christmas is over, they come into the new year planning to move. Many people list around Easter time, assuming they’ll move in summer. The extended timescales to transact mean those July and August intended moves are dragging into September and October.

What’s the solution?

If your August isn’t Augusting like it used to, we can help. If you start targeting properties at SSTC or those that have recently gone SSTC (there were 108,166 SSTCs this year in April 2026, a huge opportunity), these are the properties most likely to be moving in August this year. They’ll be in the waiting room of conveyancing, 3-4 months away from needing your vans.

Let’s get those summer dates full up again by creating a marketing campaign targeting those movers who have secured buyers this month or last. Together, we can get your brand in front of movers before your competitors. What’s more, knowing which properties in your local area are at SSTC now gives you a strong indication of the potential work in the area, so you can schedule workload and staffing ahead with more accuracy.

Ready to make August your peak period again? Let’s talk!