Rising property fall-throughs costing buyers and sellers £237.4 million

Sales fall-throughs are climbing again after spending six months in decline with the estimated number of transactions that fell-through in quarter two (Q2) hitting 69,940 – a 10.2% increase on the previous three months.

Analysis from House Buyer Bureau also shows that at the same time the average cost of a fall-through during the second quarter of 2023 was £3,394, up from £3,355 in quarter one (Q1).

11.5 % INCREASE

As such, the total cost to buyers and sellers of fall-throughs in Q2 was an estimated £237.4 million – a quarterly increase of 11.5% compared to the Q1 total of £212.9 million.

But despite the increasing numbers current fall-through rates are estimated to be still lower than they were this time last year.

The number of failed transactions is -10.4% lower than a year ago, while the total cost of fall-throughs is -5.9% lower.

Chris Hodgkinson, Managing Director of House Buyer Bureau, says: “It was more or less inevitable that fall-throughs were due to climb this year.”

FINANCES STRETCHED

“This increase has come at a considerable cost to the nation’s buyers and sellers at a time when finances are already stretched to breaking point.”

Hodgkinson says the market may have cooled in terms of transactional volumes, which has led to a reduction in fall throughs on an annual basis when compared to the heights of the pandemic boom.

But he adds: “Current market conditions are uncertain, to say the least, and many buyers have struggled with the increasing cost of borrowing which has forced them to reassess their position within the market.

“This has been a driving force behind the recent uptick in sales collapsing during the second quarter of the year and the best way to bypass this property disappointment is to secure a cash buyer as the dangers of a fall through are dramatically reduced.”