Can a Buyer Change Their Mind?

The system of property transfer we “enjoy” in this country remains relatively archaic. The main difference between England/Wales and most other countries is that we do not yet usually use binding contracts at the time of offer acceptance.

This is in many ways a huge problem, as it allows buyers, and sellers, the opportunity to withdraw from the agreed sale without notice, compensation or reason, on a whim. It may be that the buyer changes their job, they have suffered a bereavement, they lost, or came into, money, they discovered they have a dread disease, plus a host of other reasons. They might even have been offered another property they prefer!

It may be unethical to renege on an agreed deal, but it is by no means uncommon. In fact, around 25% of all sales agreed do not proceed to binding exchange and subsequent completion. (It is extremely rare for a sale to fall through after exchange of contracts).

Fortunately, our own fall-through rate is well below this national average. Most of this involves speed, so that the window of opportunity within which the buyer could withdraw is minimised. Here are some pointers:

Get your legals sorted early:

As soon as you instruct your estate agent, you should also instruct a conveyancing solicitor. It takes time to prepare a contract-ready legal pack and you may also need to find various documents that could delay a sale if there are not to hand. If we found you a buyer tomorrow, would your solicitor be ready to act equally as fast?

Understand your buyer:

Before negotiating/accepting their offer, ensure you know what the buyer’s financial position is. Someone seeking a high Loan to Value (LTV) mortgage is likely to be less assured than a cash buyer. And check if cash really does mean cash, or is release of funds dependent on some other event, such as the sale of a business or an inheritance.

Does the buyer have a place to sell? If so, is it under offer? If you choose to accept an offer from someone whose own property is apparently under offer, get proof, and remember that in accepting their offer, you are effectively restricting the saleability of your property to the saleability of theirs. Much of what we do as agents is investigating linked sales in a chain before we advise our clients to accept an offer.

Be transparent:

Be open about potential issues. Anything that could potentially influence a buyer’s decision to buy, if subsequently discovered, could jeopardise the sale more than had the buyer known about it at the outset. In fact, under the new Material Information Guidelines, it is now a legal requirement to disclose anything that could influence a buyer’s decision not only to buy, but even to view your property.

Be cool!

Tempting though it may be to accept the offer, think it through. Do the figures, and the timing, work for you personally? Do they leave you room for manoeuvrer if need be? You don’t want to find yourself in a tight corner, adding to the inevitable stress of moving.

Be quick!

Do work with us by answering any queries from your agent or solicitor immediately wherever possible. Speed is of the essence, and even a day’s delay could be the day that your buyer changes their mind.

But don’t have nightmares. We pride ourselves on holding sales together for our fabulous clients and the vast majority of our arranged sales proceed to exchange and complete without an issue. Correction: there are always issues, but we’re pretty good at sorting them out when they present themselves!