Why sales fall through, and the four things that stop it

Joe Fenwick-Hart, Sales Progressor11 May 20266 min read

An agreed sale in England is not binding until exchange, which typically comes twelve to sixteen weeks after the offer. In that gap, roughly one in four falls apart. Ours is 11.2% across the last twelve months, and I can tell you exactly where the other thirteen points went.

The four real causes

1. The buyer could not actually buy

Mortgage in principle that did not survive the full application, a deposit that was coming from a relative who changed their mind, or a buyer who had not put their own house on the market. This is the easiest one to prevent and the one most often skipped: we ask for proof of funds and a mortgage in principle before we recommend a seller accepts, and we ring the buyer's own agent to confirm their sale is agreed and where it is.

2. The survey found something

Damp, a roof, movement, a lintel. On period stone houses this is common and usually survivable — what kills the sale is surprise. If the seller knew about the chimney and did not say, the buyer stops trusting the whole transaction. If we flag it on the particulars and price it in, the survey confirms what everyone already knew.

3. Something in the legal pack

An unregistered right of way, a missing building-regulations certificate for a 2006 conservatory, a covenant, an indemnity policy the buyer's lender will not accept. Gathering the material information before launch removes most of these before an offer exists.

4. Somebody higher up the chain pulled out

The one genuinely outside anybody's control. What is inside our control is knowing about it the same week rather than a month later, and having a backup buyer we can call.

What we actually do

• Every sale is chased weekly, in writing, to both parties, whether or not there is news. "The searches are still with South Kesteven" is a legitimate update and it stops the seller assuming the worst.
• We ring down the whole chain ourselves, agent by agent, rather than accepting a summary from the agent above us.
• We keep the second-best buyer warm. When the Great Casterton bungalow fell through in March, the backup buyer was in a position to proceed within four days at the same price.
• We tell you when it is going wrong. Nobody enjoys the call that says the buyer's lender has down-valued. Making it a week earlier gives you a week more to decide what to do.

If you are already under offer with another agent and it has gone quiet, the honest advice is: ask your agent for a written chain summary. If they cannot produce one, that is where the problem is.