When it comes to moving house, we Brits don’t like to venture too far afield.

In fact, 70 per cent of us prefer to stay less than 20 miles from the home we’re selling, according to a new study.

The research by My Home Move covered sales between 2011-15, and found that those of us living in the leafy home counties are even more likely to stay local, with 71 per cent of us opting to buy a new home nearby.

The home moving habits of 26,000 people were analysed in the conveyancing firm’s study, which revealed greater London sellers as the ones least likely to stay put, with just 57 per cent opting to buy another home in the capital.

Residents of the north east were the most loyal to their locality, however, with 90 per cent buying again in the same region.

Doug Crawford, CEO of My Home Move, said: “It would seem that we really are a nation of homebodies, preferring to move no further than 20 miles from our old postcodes.

“The last five years have presented some real challenges for home movers, with rising house prices, gazumping on the increase and a lack of stock leaving many questioning if now is the right time to move.

“We are not surprised people feel more confident in buying in places they know well.”

The study also showed that the majority of those who did decide to move further afield usually opted to stay within 75 miles of their former home, simply moving over the border and into the next region.

Doug Crawford added: “Our research has also revealed that the north-south divide is alive and well.

“In the majority of instances where people did decide to move out of their region, they chose to move either east or west, with very few opting to travel either up or down the country.”

This showed that people’s sense of identity is “still strongly rooted in where they live and where they have come from”, Doug concluded.