According to the quarterly fall through figures, the last three months of 2019 saw a quarterly fall through rate of 28.21%.
Looking at reasons for the failed sales, it seems both buyers and sellers are happy to keep looking for a better deal, even after an offer on a property has been accepted. Of the property sales that were unsuccessful in the last quarter of 2019, 36% fell through because the buyer changed their mind and a further 27% collapsed as a result of the seller accepting a higher offer from a different buyer.
Other reasons for failed sales included problems securing mortgage finance (18%), buyer pulling out of the sale due to a problem identified in the property survey (9%) and a sale further up the property chain falling through (9%).
Why property sales failed in Q4 2019:
Buyer changed mind - 36%
Seller accepted higher offer from different buyer - 27%
Difficulty securing a mortgage - 18%
Problem identified during survey - 9%
Chain Break - 9%
Annually, the top reason for unsuccessful sales was the same, followed by difficulty securing a mortgage (17%), seller pulling out due to slow sale progression (15%), chain break (13%), buyer pulling out as a result of a problem identified during the property survey (11%) and the seller accepting a higher offer from a different buyer (10%).
Why property sales failed in 2019:
Buyer changed mind - 34%
Difficulty securing a mortgage - 17%
Seller pulled out due to slow progress - 15%
Chain Break - 13%
Problem identified during survey - 11%
Seller accepted higher offer from different buyer - 10%
Danny Luke, Quick Move Now's managing director, commented: “2019 was another mixed year for the property market. Further Brexit uncertainty and a general election created a significant amount of uncertainty, which undoubtedly had an impact on market confidence and led to some would-be buyers and sellers taking a 'wait and see' approach.
“Those who did choose to move forward with a sale or purchase were serious and committed to the sale - the annual fall through rate is the lowest we have seen since 2013 - but buyer and seller caution are still visible in the reasons given for unsuccessful sales.
“Post-general election, we expect to see a level of confidence return to the market over the coming year.”
