Why do house sales fall through…and how to avoid it happening? (Part 2)

As we looked at in Part 1 of this blog, house sales can unfortunately fall through sometimes, and although there are some factors that are beyond our control, there are things that can be done to minimise the risk of this happening.

In Part 1 we looked at boundary disputes and financing issues which can cause a sale to fall through. Now we will look at a few more factors, starting with one attributable to ‘the human condition’.

A change of mind.
Cold feet or, as it’s often dubbed, “buyer’s remorse,” happens surprisingly often: fear of commitment, fear of being overextended, fear that the house is not “the one.” Sometimes instincts are correct, but often people let the natural anxiety of home buying wrap around the home itself.
There are many reasons why a person may change their mind and wish to back out of a property deal and unfortunately there’s very little can be done to avoid this. Fortunately, as mentioned in our previous blog Lucky to be buying and selling in Scotland, the Scottish conveyancing system largely prevents ‘hollow’ offers being made on properties, however that doesn’t mean to say it can’t happen.

A change of circumstances.
With some transactions taking up to 6 months (and beyond in some cases), it is not surprising that a person’s circumstances may change in that period. Perhaps a loss of job, or possibly a promotion that involves a relocation, resulting in what was the ideal property suddenly becoming not viable. A new addition to the family could also appear on the horizon in a six month period, and so that beautiful penthouse flat with glass and granite finishes may no longer be the perfect home.
A lot can happen in 6 months, indeed as John Lennon was reputed to have said, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”
As with many of the other situations we have looked at, there’s not much that can be done about a person’s change in circumstances, however what you can do is ensure your house selling and buying teams are ‘on the ball’ and do whatever you can to avoid any unnecessary delays in the process thereby lessening the chance of such things occurring.

Someone in the chain hasn’t been able to sell.
Fortunately in Scotland large selling chains aren’t common, and even less so in Argyll, however they do exist, and the more parties involved in a chain the greater the chance of one or more of the factors above happening to one or more parties in the chain.
It is always desirable to keep a chain as short as possible, and a vendor can eliminate the upward chain entirely by moving into rented accommodation, or by having already purchased their subsequent property, or maybe even by going sailing round the world (we can all dream!).
Unfortunately, there is little we can do about our buyer’s circumstances – the downward chain – however as we mentioned in part one, sellers should always view offers as an entire package, and not necessarily go for the highest offer made. If the highest offer made on a property came from a buyer who would be part of a chain, it is worth considering whether the extra money is worthwhile given the additional risk and complications that a downward chain can bring.

Hopefully this blog has highlighted some of the more common reasons that house sales can fall though and, more importantly, how to potentially avoid them.
In summary, as with many things in life, the key is good communication and you can be assured that Fiuran Property recognises the importance of this and will be with you every step of the way.