SHOULD I stay or should I go? That’s not only the title of a brilliant song by The Clash, but also a dilemma I am currently wrestling with.

I am contemplating moving house and even though I am only at the very early stages, it’s already proving to be a terrifying prospect.

Anyone who has ever moved house will probably agree it is one of the most stressful things in life. Awful memories are flooding back of the hell I went through to move to my current home eighteen years ago.

It took more than six months from agreeing to buy it to actually moving in. Along the way there were constant issues being thrown up by the solicitors acting for the person buying my previous house.

I started to think the move would never happen; that the people whose house I was buying would lose patience and pull out. I had sleepless nights about the money already spent on surveys and all the other arrangements.

It got so bad that I ended up losing my voice. I can remember struggling through BBC Spotlight one evening, as my voice got weaker and weaker. I went home assuring my colleagues I would be okay tomorrow, a whisky and an early night would sort it.

But I had underestimated the toll that a stalled house move was taking on me. I was off work for a few days because I literally had no voice. It had never happened before and has never happened since. In fact those were among the very few days I was off sick in my entire BBC career.

It is of course probably the biggest investment most of us will ever make in our lives, so it is important to get it right. But why does it have to be so complicated and so stressful?

There are so many hurdles to overcome, it staggers me that anyone ever manages to move house at all and it’s got even worse since I last changed address.

Now there are Energy Performance Certificates to consider and flood risk assessments on top of everything else.

So, why am I thinking about going through all that worry and uncertainty again?

It’s a good question and there’s a simple answer: cost! I love my house, but it’s becoming too expensive to live in.

For a start it has oil central heating. Yes, I know I am famous for not putting the heating on, but when I do I can almost see ten-pound notes going up in flames.

Then there’s the dreaded Council Tax. When I moved here eighteen years ago, I stupidly hadn’t clocked that this house was in a much higher band than my previous home. The Council Tax has been a constant source of pain and anger ever since.

I find the whole issue of Council Tax baffling. How were the bands decided? It’s as if someone just stuck a pin in a list of figures and said: “that’ll do”.

Having been stung before I am taking great care to check the Council Tax band of any potential new home and as a result I have noticed how random it is.

I have seen properties worth twice as much as mine but they’re in the same band as me. Worse still, there are properties worth twice as much as mine but are in bands two or three lower down.

It makes no sense!

But as I mentioned, another reason for thinking of moving is the on-going cost of using heating oil, not to mention the environmental factors. I would love greener and cheaper heating.

I watch a lot of property makeover programmes and it seems all they ever talk about is air source heat pumps, solar panels and rainwater harvesting for the toilets.

These fancy new homes are often extra insulated and triple glazed and the owners gleefully proclaim that they pay hardly anything to run their home.

I watch with envy, then realise that they have probably spent the equivalent of a lifetime of energy bills either buying or renovating the property.

Finding a house that is smaller, cheaper, has lower Council Tax and is highly energy efficient is proving to be an interesting challenge.

There are plenty of houses for sale in Cornwall, but finding one that ticks all the right boxes is hard. I don’t want to get it wrong.

For instance I have great neighbours at the moment but what if I move to a house and don’t have such considerate neighbours? No amount of surveys can reassure me on that score.

There’s so much to think about. I’d still like to be in the countryside, but would also like all the modern conveniences such as mains drainage and decent broadband.

Sadly countryside living and modern conveniences are often not compatible or are only possible at a huge cost.

In fact nothing highlights the wealth divide in Cornwall and Devon like property.

The number of multi-million pound houses for sale here is staggering.

Huge glass and concrete boxes erected on stunning sites overlooking the sea; more Hollywood than Holywell!

And who knew we had so many “small” country estates with grand manor houses that have been so beautifully restored?

Who is lucky enough to be able to buy these fabulous places? It’s safe to say it won’t be me.

If I do move though I will miss my little garden. It wasn’t here when I moved in. I created it from scratch and it’s been a labour of love ever since. The flowers and shrubs are now like old friends.

So, should I stay or should I go? It’s a hard decision. The cost of staying is frightening. But the cost of moving, both financially and emotionally, is also daunting.

There’s stamp duty, estate agent fees, legal and removal costs. Then there’s the small matter of the actual cost of the house itself!

I realise I am very lucky. More and more people are struggling to even get on the property ladder let alone contemplate moving.

One thing’s for certain, I won’t be rushing into any decisions. Although, the harsh reality of the next oil and Council Tax bills could leave me with little choice.

Bye for now!