Is there a weak link in your property chain?
A property chain occurs when buyers and sellers are linked together because their purchase or sale is dependant on another transaction further down the chain. Often these chains can have dozens of parties connected. As a result, it’s difficult to assess the average property chain length; it can vary from three to ten or more!
If only one person forgets to do something, be refused their mortgage or pull out because they’ve changed their mind for the whole chain to be delayed or collapse.
When you’ve spent months getting to the point of completion, this can be devastating news. It can also be costly; on average, the loss to a vendor (incremental legal fees, utility bills, mortgage payments, etc.) is just under £3,000. And of course, that’s not taking into account the cost to your health – you can understand why moving house is cited as the number one stress in the UK.
The top 10 reasons for a collapse in a property chain:
- Mortgage funds refused
- The survey throws up a problem.
- The buyer changes their mind.
- The seller can’t find another property.
- The buyer reduces their offer last minute.
- The seller receives a better offer.
- The seller changes their mind.
- Buyer or seller illness or death
- Seller divorce or separation
- Conveyancing delay
What can you do to stop your property chain from breaking?
There isn’t a lot you can do if there is a problem somewhere along the chain, but you can minimise any issues by making sure sellers, buyers, estate agents and solicitors dealing with the legal process are up to date and in touch with each other.
- Get a good solicitor or conveyancer who will chase your buyers or sellers solicitors to ensure nothing is outstanding at every stage of the process.
- Make sure your mortgage offer, if required, is ready promptly as securing mortgage finance and the offer is a critical part of the process.
- Ensure the Estate Agent is aware of all the participants in the property chain to chase up.
- Check any survey issues quickly on any house you are buying or your own home if a buyer purchases it.
- Check with your mortgage company if there are any retentions from mortgage offers, and ask buyers to do the same.
In 2018 just under 40% of property sales fell through, which equals over 300,000 transactions a year! One-third of those failed sales were attributed to the buyers failing to get their finance approved, 69% due to the buyer pulling out.
Some more FAQ for Property Chains
What does chain free mean when buying a property?
Chain free when buying another property means that your purchase is not dependant on anyone else selling or buying a house, which is the same as no chain.
How can I avoid a property chain?
The simplest way of avoiding property chains if buying is to limit your search for a home to chain free property for sale. And if selling, then restricts the sale of your home to a cash buyer or someone who does not need a mortgage or has no property to sell (often a first-time buyer).
What can I do when a property chain breaks?
If any part of the chain breaks, make sure the estate agent remarkets the property quickly, possibly at a reduced price, to find another buyer and minimise delays. If the break is your purchase or sale, move quickly to find another property or find another buyer.
Flying Homes encounter such scenarios daily. Approximately 30% of quick sale firms property purchases are from broken property chains. Even job loss can endanger the sale of your home, so always keep any other offers on the back-burner until your sale completes; you can always sell your house fast to a cash house buyer.
