Getting a sale over the line
Most sales that fail do so for administrative reasons. Managing the process is as important as winning the offer.
Once an offer is accepted, the risk changes. It is no longer about attracting a buyer, it is about keeping the one you have — and the reasons sales fail after acceptance are mostly administrative rather than commercial.
The seller's role in this phase is smaller than in the marketing phase, but not zero. Keeping the process moving, responding promptly, and managing the relationship with the buyer all reduce the risk of a fall-through.
Where sales stall
These are the points at which a sale most often loses momentum, and each has a predictable remedy.
- The buyer's mortgage application, where a valuation or an underwriting query delays the offer
- The survey, where a finding prompts a renegotiation
- Searches, where a local authority is slow or a search reveals something unexpected
- Enquiries, where the buyer's solicitor raises questions that take time to answer
- The buyer's own sale, where a chain collapses further up
- Exchange, where a date is agreed and then slips for administrative reasons
What the seller can do
The seller's contribution is responsiveness and preparation. A question answered the same day keeps a file moving; a question left for a week costs a week.
- Answer enquiries promptly, and provide documents rather than descriptions
- Have the certificates, guarantees and reports ready before they are requested
- Keep in contact with the agent, and ask for a weekly update on the buyer's progress
- Where the buyer's chain is the problem, consider whether a reduction or a flexible completion date would help
- Do not stop marketing until contracts are exchanged, and keep other interested parties informed
The point of exchange
Exchange is where the sale becomes binding and the risk largely transfers to the buyer. Until then, either party can withdraw, which is why the seller should treat the period between offer and exchange as a period of continued risk.
A deposit is only forfeited after exchange, and a buyer who withdraws before it does so without penalty. That is why sellers are advised not to turn away other interested parties entirely until contracts are exchanged — a note of who else was interested is what makes the position recoverable.
Common questions
- Why do property sales fall through?
- Most commonly because of a failure elsewhere in the chain, followed by a mortgage problem, a survey finding that prompts a renegotiation, or a buyer changing their mind. The reasons are mostly administrative rather than commercial, which is why responsiveness and preparation during the process reduce the risk.
- Can a buyer pull out before exchange?
- Yes. Until contracts are exchanged there is no binding agreement and either party can withdraw without penalty. The deposit is only forfeited after exchange. This is why sellers should not turn other interested buyers away entirely until exchange has taken place.