Almost a third of people considering moving home have yet to speak to an estate agent, suggesting a significant potential pipeline remains invisible to the market.

Research from LRG found 31% of respondents had not contacted an agent about the move they were considering.

The decision-making process can also start long before a valuation or instruction.

Some 40% said they considered moving for at least a year before contacting an agent. More than one in five – 22% – waited more than two years.

By contrast, just 19% contacted an agent almost immediately.

Kevin Shaw, national sales managing director at LRG, said: “By the time someone books a valuation they’re not starting their move; they’re already well into it.

“The questions they most needed answering are the ones they had a year or two ago, when nobody knew they were thinking about it.”

Personal circumstances drive moves

The research suggests life events remain a much stronger trigger for moving than financial considerations.

When asked what prompted them to act, 73% cited a personal reason. Just 16% pointed to mortgage rates, their finances or certainty about selling.

Finding the right property was the most commonly cited individual trigger, at 34%.

A change in family or personal circumstances followed at 31%, while 30% cited retirement or a change in lifestyle or location.

Shaw said: “Rates and taxes may decide when a move happens, but very rarely decide whether it happens.

“A growing family or a retirement is what can start a move, and cost is what often sets the date. Anyone reading this market from transaction figures alone is reading a lagging indicator.”

Long-term owners take longer to decide

The period between considering a move and acting was particularly long among people who had remained in the same property for decades.

Among owners who had lived in their home for more than 20 years, 34% spent more than two years considering a move.

That compares with just 9% among people who had moved into their current property two to five years ago.

Separate English Housing Survey figures show 39% of households headed by someone aged 65 or over have occupied the same home for at least 30 years.

Meanwhile, the transaction itself is also taking longer.

Rightmove reported in August that the average move across Great Britain takes 216 days from listing to completion.

Cost remains biggest barrier

LRG also asked respondents what prevented them from moving sooner.

The overall cost of moving was the most commonly cited barrier, at 54%. Difficulty finding the right property followed at 37%.

Cost was an even greater concern among certain groups. Some 71% of family movers looking to upsize identified it as a barrier, as did 67% of respondents aged under 45.

Different concerns emerged among long-term homeowners.

Among those who had occupied the same home for at least 20 years, 28% cited the stress of moving.

That compares with 14% among people who had moved within the past two to five years.

Attachment to the existing home was cited by 15% of long-term owners, compared with 5% of more recent movers.

Shaw said the findings highlighted the potential value to agents of engaging prospective sellers before they reach the valuation stage.

He added: “Every agent has people on their books who are two years into a decision they haven’t mentioned. They’re not waiting for the market to change; they’re waiting for answers to questions they haven’t asked.

“If the only conversation you’re set up to have starts at the valuation, you’re meeting people at the end of their thinking rather than the start of it.”