12 Dec The real cost of property fall throughs and how to mitigate them

Estate agency is one of the few professions where you can work lengthy hours, invest time, energy and incur costs, yet walk away with nothing if the transaction fails.

From valuation visits and photography, to arranging and attending viewings, chasing paperwork and liaison with all involved – hours of work is invested in securing a sale.

Fall throughs have become an accepted part of agency life but they really should be the exception, not the norm. They hit cash flow, increase workload and impact team morale. With sales fall through rates at a high of 30% and each transaction worth an average of £4,000, that’s potentially £240,000 on lost revenue per year for a business that’s selling 60 properties per year (the industry average). A significant financial impact on the agency but also, a knock-on effect to a whole chain of wider industry professionals – mortgage brokers, conveyancers and so on. Whilst significant, it’s not just the financial implications that have an impact, there are further costs to fall throughs which need to be considered: the opportunity cost and the emotional toll.

Firstly, opportunity cost: if agents are spending hours on a sale that eventually falls through, not only has the time been wasted on that particular sale, but also, potential listings may be missed due to not having the capacity to secure them.

Fall throughs also strain the energy of the team and put further pressure on relationships with peers, as well as clients. Agents build relationships and trust with clients, sharing the journey from listing to completion, and when a transaction falls through, that trust can falter. For both buyer and seller, it can deter them from the process which in turn, can create market stagnation. It’s not just about replacing the lost sale, it’s about regaining momentum, and restoring trust and confidence in a fragile situation.

Speeding up and strengthening transactions

Encouragingly, both government and industry are taking steps to tackle the causes of these failures. From the government’s home buying reform plans announced in October, to the Project 28 Charter, to the most recent announcement that almost £2 million in government funding has been allocated to modernise conveyancing and improve shared access to property data – tackling the lengthy sales process and mitigating fall throughs is at the top of the agenda.

Mitigating fall throughs  

At ASAP, we’ve long championed many of the principle highlighted in the reforms. Our experiences shows that collating and supplying key information upfront – title documents, planning consents, property information forms, and details of any leasehold arrangements and sharing with all parties from the outset – dramatically reduces fall throughs and can shave up to eight weeks off transaction times. Agents who provide clear guidance to vendors and encourage them to prepare this information see a smoother journey and fewer deal collapses.

Communication remains critical, too — fostering collaboration between buyers, sellers, solicitors and mortgage providers keeps everyone aligned and helps resolve issues faster. Setting realistic expectations on timelines and costs also reduces stress and disappointment later on. There’s a direct correlation between transaction times and fall through rates – each delay increasing the chance of a buyer losing interest, circumstances changing, or alternative properties becoming more appealing.

Technology, transparency and trust

The combination of government-funded reform and industry-led collaboration represents a genuine opportunity to change the culture around property transactions. Digital data-sharing frameworks, standardised upfront information and early legal instruction could transform the buying and selling experience — reducing wasted effort, rebuilding trust and helping agents safeguard revenue.

Fall throughs may never be eradicated entirely, but they no longer need to be accepted as part of the job. With the right tools, transparency and collaboration, and with reforms gathering momentum, the industry is heading in the right direction to reduce the frequency of failed transactions.

Curious about the true financial impact of fall-throughs on your agency, and how much more you could be earning with faster transaction times? Find out using our Revenue Calculator now.