How Often Do Property Chains Break?

Finding a buyer for your property can feel like it’s all done and dusted — but it couldn’t be further from the truth. 

As well as the average time on the market sitting at a whopping 185 days — that’s over six months — as of September 2024, a staggering 35% of all property sales fell through in 2023, and plenty of these were due to a broken chain.

The truth is that whether you’re at the bottom, top or somewhere in the middle, a single weak link can bring the whole thing crashing down. 

But exactly how often do property chains break? Why does it happen? And is there anything you can do to prevent it? This guide covers all this and more.

What is a property chain?

Imagine Steve and Sarah are looking to buy their first home together. They decide to put in an offer on Alex and John’s place, and it’s accepted.

Then Alex and John put in an offer on Marina and Seb’s place, which is accepted. That’s two links, so at this point it becomes a chain.

Marina and Seb are moving in with family, so they aren’t looking to buy, so that’s the end of the chain.

So here, we have three sellers, with two links. And the name of the game now is to get everyone’s ducks in a row financially and legally to make both sales ‘links’ go smoothly and to get them over the finish line.

If one of the ‘links’ break, it stalls the rest of the chain. If Steve and Sarah can’t get a mortgage, Alex and John can’t sell their house and move into Marina and Seb’s place. Likewise, if Alex and John get cold feet and decide not to continue with buying Marina and Seb’s place, Steve and Sarah can’t continue with buying the home they set their sights on.

Property chains vary in length. Three to six sellers in a chain are fairly common, though it’s not unusual to get ten or more.

How often do property chains break?

Recent research suggests that 1 in 3 property transactions in the UK falls through. With approximately 858,000 property sales in 2023, that translates to over 300,000 stalled sales.

But how many of these were down to a broken chain specifically?

Recent figures suggest that around 60% are caused by a change in the buyer’s circumstances or the buyer changing their mind and withdrawing their offer. Meanwhile, around 25% of failed sales were caused by chain-break, and around 8% were because of struggles securing a mortgage — not much of a surprise given how many lenders have grown more cautious in recent years.

So, around 75,000 property sales were stalled by a broken chain in 2023. That’s a heck of a lot of stress, frustration and wasted time!

The real costs of a broken property chain

It’s not just the immediate parties who are affected when a property chain breaks. Any sellers in the chain may lose their next home, while any buyers might need to start their search again.

First of all there are the actual costs, because surveys, legal fees and even temporary accommodation can quickly rack up. According to Propertymark, the average cost of a failed sale is just shy of £3,000.

Then there’s the lost time. You may need to start the selling process from scratch — and remember, on average it takes over six months to sell a property. Then there’s the emotional side of it all, because let’s face it, dealing with the overwhelm, chaos and fallout of a broken chain is mentally exhausting.

Just because chain breaks are a common occurrence, it doesn’t mean they’re easy to weather.

Why do property chains break?

We’ve been in the property industry for decades, and we have witnessed the fallout from thousands of chain breaks and helped buyers and sellers get back on their feet and move on afterwards. Here are the top five things that in our experience caused the chain breaks:

Mortgage issues

Most buyers rely on a mortgage, which means most buyers’ fate rests in the hands of their lender. Mortgage delays are common, arising from things like incomplete paperwork or changes in a buyer’s financial circumstances. 

Worse still, if the buyer no longer meets the lender’s criteria, offers can be withdrawn entirely. All it takes is a drop in income or an issue flagged during the valuation process. When this happens, it’s like pulling the plug on the entire transaction, leaving everyone in limbo.

Gazumping and gazundering

Gazumping is when a seller accepts a higher offer from another buyer after initially agreeing to sell to someone else. On the flip side, gazundering is when a buyer lowers their offer just before contracts are exchanged. Both practices are extremely frustrating…and entirely legal in England and Wales. 

Both scenarios not only derail chains but also add significant emotional and financial stress for everyone involved.

Survey surprises

Property surveys can be a minefield of unexpected discoveries — rising damp, structural issues and outdated electrics are some of the more frequent frustrating findings. Major issues often scare buyers away altogether, forcing sellers to relist their property or negotiate costly repairs. Even smaller issues can lead to drawn-out haggling over price adjustments, delaying the process and potentially breaking the chain. 

For sellers, it’s a stark reminder of the importance of transparency, while for buyers it’s a reality check about the true state of their potential new home. Unfortunately, these surprises can throw even the most well-intentioned transactions into chaos, resulting in parties being frustrated and out of pocket.

Cold feet

Buying a house is one of the biggest financial decisions most people will ever make. It’s no surprise, then, that some buyers get cold feet. The reasons vary, from worries about committing to a mortgage to second thoughts about the property, to simply feeling overwhelmed by the process. 

When this happens, it’s not just their own plans that fall apart — the entire chain can collapse. Sellers and other buyers are left scrambling to pick up the pieces. For sellers, it’s a harsh reminder that even a signed agreement isn’t a guarantee until contracts are exchanged.

Delays up the chain

A property chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and delays at any point can have a domino effect. It could be a slow solicitor, a misplaced crucial document, or a survey issue with a house elsewhere in the chain. Such delays can grind the entire chain to a halt. 

These hold-ups are especially stressful for sellers who are working to a tight deadline, such as relocating for work or avoiding repossession. The longer the delay, the greater the risk of the chain falling apart altogether.

Can I avoid a broken property chain break?

While you can’t control everything, there are a few steps you can take to protect yourself, such as:

• Vetting your buyers carefully. Do they have a solid mortgage offer and a good track record?
• Keeping in regular contact with your estate agent and solicitor to ensure everything is progressing as it should. Miscommunication is one of the easiest ways for chains to falter.
• Being realistic about your timelines can avoid hiccups later on. We know it’s tempting to aim for a quick sale, but rushing can lead to mistakes and missed details.

But there’s no getting away from the fact that if you’re in a chain, you depend on everyone else in that chain, and on their transactions going smoothly.

In other words, the best way to avoid property chain break? Avoid a property chain altogether! 

Avoid the chain, avoid the pain

So to answer “How often to property chains break?” — all the time. Tens of thousands of times in a year, for a host of reasons. In other words, property chain breaks are a reality of the traditional market.

But they don’t have to be your reality.

Selling to a cash house buyer like SellHouseFast.co.uk means you can opt out of the uncertainty and stress of chains altogether. No more waiting, no more worrying, no more hoping the next link holds. 

Instead, you get to experience our streamlined process, with guaranteed cash in your account in a matter of days and zero fees.

Ready to sell? Take control of your property sale today. Get in touch with us for a no-obligation free cash offer and see just how simple moving on can be.