Moving house in winter works perfectly well, but it is not the quiet season people expect: December is one of the busiest months of the year for completions, and only January is genuinely calm. The things that actually change are the dates you can complete on over Christmas, the hours of daylight you have to work with, and a few practical jobs around ice, rain and heating that nobody thinks about in July.
Is winter a quiet time to move?
Half of it is. The common advice is that winter is the off-season for removals, and that is true of January and early February. December is a different story, because buyers and sellers push hard to complete before Christmas so they can spend the holidays in the new place.
HMRC's own figures show how sharp the swing is. These are UK residential completions, not seasonally adjusted, from the monthly property transactions tables on GOV.UK:
| Month | UK residential completions | What it means for a move |
|---|---|---|
| July 2025 | 101,660 | Summer peak begins, Fridays book out first |
| August 2025 | 105,240 | The busiest summer month |
| December 2025 | 105,920 | As busy as August, squeezed into three weeks |
| January 2026 | 80,900 | The quietest month, most choice of dates |
December 2025 was busier than August 2025, and almost all of that work happened before about the 23rd. So a December completion needs booking with the same lead time as a summer one. Our guide on how far in advance to book a house move has the timings. The Fridays in the first three weeks of December go first.
January is where the flexibility is. If your dates are not fixed by a chain, a midweek move in the second half of January gives you the widest choice of times and crews of any point in the year.
Which days you can complete on over Christmas
This is the part that catches buyers out. Completion money travels between solicitors by CHAPS, and the Bank of England's CHAPS page says the system is usually open 06:00 to 18:00, Monday to Friday, excluding bank and public holidays in England and Wales. No CHAPS, no completion, and no keys.
For 2026, the GOV.UK bank holidays list gives Christmas Day on Friday 25 December, Boxing Day moved to Monday 28 December because the 26th falls on a Saturday, and New Year's Day on Friday 1 January 2027. Put that together and the gap looks like this:
- Thursday 24 December is a working day, but many firms close early and money sent late in the afternoon may not land in time.
- Friday 25 to Monday 28 December: four days in a row with no completions at all.
- Tuesday 29 to Thursday 31 December: three working days, often with skeleton staff at solicitors and estate agents.
- Friday 1 to Sunday 3 January: no completions again, until Monday 4 January.
If your solicitor offers Christmas Eve, ask them to send the money first thing that morning, and agree a time with the estate agent for collecting keys. A completion that drifts to 16:00 on the 24th leaves very little day for unloading. Under our terms and conditions, late-key cover costs £48 including VAT and covers up to three hours of waiting, which is worth considering on a date like that.
Renters are not tied to CHAPS, so a tenancy move can happen on a bank holiday if the landlord or agent will hand over keys. We work seven days a week including bank holidays, so the date is usually decided by the keys, not the van.
If the dates still do not meet, put the gap into storage rather than forcing the move. Our secure storage is charged by the week with no minimum term, so holding a house over the Christmas fortnight costs two weeks, not a contract. And if the date moves at the last minute, our guide to a completion date that changes at the last minute covers what to do first.
Planning around the short days
According to Royal Museums Greenwich, the shortest day in London lasts 7 hours 49 minutes and 42 seconds, and in 2026 the solstice falls on Monday 21 December. In practice that means the light has gone by mid-afternoon, and a move that would finish in daylight in June finishes in the dark in December.
That changes the plan in three ways.
Start earlier. An 08:00 start on a two-bedroom flat usually means the van is unloading at the new address in daylight. A 10:00 start often does not. Our house removals crews do early starts, so if your keys allow it, take the early slot.
Light the new place before you need it. Empty homes are often left with no bulbs at all, or with the electricity supply switched off at the fuse board. Put two table lamps, a few spare bulbs and a torch in the box that travels in your car. Find the fuse board and the light switches for the hallway and stairs while it is still light.
Light the route. The path from the van to the front door matters more than the house. If the outside light is on a timer or a sensor, check it works before the crew arrive, and leave a porch or hallway light on at the old address when you go.
Rain, ice and the front path
London rarely gets enough snow to stop a move. What it gets is rain, wet leaves and the odd frosty morning, which are a bigger problem at 07:30 than at noon.
The night before, clear leaves off the front steps and the path at both addresses if you can. If a frost is forecast, put down some salt or grit on the steps first thing. A crew carrying a wardrobe down a slippery front step is the single most avoidable risk of a winter move, and it costs you a bag of salt.
Inside, the crew protect the floors and doorways at both properties before anything moves, and wrap sofas and mattresses before they go outside. That covering matters far more in December than in July, because every trip in and out brings rain and grit with it. Put an old towel or two by each door as well, for the dog, the children and you.
Think about where boxes have been sitting. Cardboard left in a damp garage or shed for a week softens at the base and can give way when it is lifted. Keep packed boxes in the warmest, driest room you have, not the coldest.
If the weather turns properly bad, such as snow that closes roads, our terms treat severe weather as an event beyond our control. We will keep you informed and agree the best way forward with you. Most of the time the move still goes ahead, just slower.
What does not like a cold van
A van parked outside for a few hours in December is cold inside. Most things do not care. A few do.
Televisions, laptops and games consoles can collect condensation inside when they come from a cold van into a warm room. Leave them to come up to room temperature before plugging them in, rather than switching the TV on the minute it is unwrapped. The manual will give the operating range if you want to check.
Houseplants can be damaged by a long spell in the cold. Wrap them loosely in paper or a bag and take them in your car. The same goes for anything that is mainly water: tins of paint, cleaning products and drinks should not sit in an unheated van or a storage unit overnight in a hard frost.
Pianos and solid wood furniture dislike sudden swings in temperature more than cold itself. Once they are in, keep them away from a radiator that has just been turned up full. If you are moving a piano, our piano and specialist items team will talk you through where it should stand.
Heating, water and the house you leave
In winter you are heating the house with the front door open for most of the day. Keep internal doors shut where you can, so only the hallway and the room being cleared lose heat. Leave the heating on at the old address until the crew has finished. It is miserable to pack the last kitchen box in a cold house, and you still need the hot water.
Before you leave, take photos of the readings for gas, electricity and water, with the date showing. If the old place will stand empty through the winter, turn the water off at the stopcock or leave the heating on a low frost setting, and tell your insurer if the policy has rules about unoccupied homes.
At the new home, find three things on day one: the boiler, the stopcock and the thermostat. Ask the seller or agent to leave the boiler manual. If the heating does not come on, you want to know that at 14:00 on moving day, not at 21:00 with the children in bed.
Councils, parking and bins over the holidays
Council offices close over Christmas, so a parking application sent in the last fortnight of December can sit unread until January. If you need a bay suspended outside either address, apply early in December, not the week before. Our guide to getting a parking suspension for moving day explains how the process works.
Road charges change slightly over the holidays too. The Congestion Charge does not apply from Christmas Day to the New Year's Day bank holiday, while ULEZ runs every day except Christmas Day. We have covered both in our guide to whether removal vans pay ULEZ and the Congestion Charge.
Bin collections usually shift by a day or two around bank holidays, and a move produces a lot of cardboard. Check your new council's holiday collection dates before you unpack, so you are not living with a hallway full of flattened boxes until the second week of January.
In short
Winter is two seasons for removals. December is as busy as August, so book a pre-Christmas completion early and be realistic about Christmas Eve. January is the quiet month and the best time to move if your dates are flexible. Completions cannot happen on bank holidays or weekends, which in 2026 closes 25 to 28 December and 1 to 3 January. Start early to finish in daylight, clear and grit the steps, keep electronics and plants out of the cold, and leave the heating on until the last box has gone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to move house in winter?
January is usually the easiest month to find a date and crew that suit you, because it is the quietest month for completions. December is not quiet at all. HMRC's figures show more UK residential completions in December 2025 than in August 2025, so pre-Christmas dates fill up as quickly as summer ones.
Can I complete on Christmas Eve?
Yes, if your solicitor and the other side agree, because 24 December is a normal banking day. The risk is timing. Many offices close early, so ask for the money to be sent first thing and agree when keys will be released. If keys come late, there is less daylight left for unloading.
Can I move between Christmas and New Year?
Yes. In 2026, 29, 30 and 31 December are working days, so completions can happen on them, although solicitors and agents may be short-staffed. Rental moves are not tied to banking days at all, so they can happen on any day the keys are available.
What happens if it snows on moving day?
In London a move usually still goes ahead, just more slowly and carefully. If roads are closed or conditions are unsafe, severe weather counts as an event beyond our control under our terms, and we will keep you informed and agree a new plan with you. Clear and grit both sets of steps if you can.
Should I leave the heating on in the old house?
Yes, at least until the crew has finished. You will be packing the last boxes there, and an empty house left cold in a frost risks burst pipes. If it will stand empty for weeks, either turn the water off at the stopcock or set the heating to a low frost setting.
If you are planning a move between now and February, tell us your dates early, especially anything in December. We will tell you honestly which slots are still free, suggest a start time that keeps you in daylight, and quote a fixed price with storage included if the Christmas gap needs bridging.