One third of property sales fall through as buyers feel the pressure of a hot market

34 percent of property sales fell through before completion in the final three months of 2021, according to new figures.

Of that 34 percent, half failed because the buyer changed their mind about the property or tried to renegotiate the agreed sale price at the last minute, which experts suggest gives an insight into the current mood of the property market.

Danny Luke from Quick Move Now explains: “It’s been well documented that the property market has been operating in very unusual circumstances over the last 12 months. Government stamp duty measures were successful in reigniting the market after initial uncertainty of Covid-19, but many would argue that it also led to an overheating of the market.

“Throughout 2021, properties have consistently sold for above asking price as buyers have competed to secure their desired property. Time pressure, created by the stamp duty holiday deadline, and a shortage of properties coming to the market worked together to create a huge amount of pressure for those hoping to buy a new property. 

“One of our properties had 62 viewings booked in for its first week on market. We received 22 offers, including three from buyers who hadn’t been able to get in to view the property in person. Traditionally, buyers would do a second viewing to take a closer look at a property and think through some of the more practical aspects of owning the property before making an offer. The current market is so high pressure and competition for each property is so fierce that buyers are needing to make an offer straight after the first viewing, or before they’ve even viewed the property, if they want any chance of beating the competition to secure the property.”

Even once an offer has been accepted, the sale is vulnerable, as proven by the latest fall through figures.

“28 percent of failed sales are due to gazumping – where the seller pulls out of the sale for a higher offer – or because the seller felt the sale wasn’t progressing quickly enough, so even once the offer has been accepted the pressure is still on the buyer to make sure their offer was attractive enough and that they’re in a position to complete the sale quickly. This type of pressure just gets too much for some buyers, leading to cold feet and failed sales.”