One in three sales falls through. Here is how to keep yours on track.

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Ad - Horton and Garton reveal how to avoid major moving pitfalls

One in three sales falls through. Here is how to keep yours on track.

 Horton and Garton explain two of the most feared terms when moving house and share ways to avoid them happening to you.

 Gazumping and gazundering are two of the more unsettling words a home mover can hear. Both are still legal in England and Wales, and both thrive when a sale is left to drift. In our recent blog article, we uncovered what gazumping and gazundering mean, and how buyers and sellers across Chiswick, Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush can avoid being caught out.

Here are some of the key points from that article. For more selling and buying guidance head over to our website.

How often do property transactions fall through?

Gazumping and gazundering are words most home movers hope to avoid but the reality is that across the UK it is estimated that around one in three sales falls through before completion, and these two scenarios account for a proportion of fall throughs.

The government's home buying and selling reform roadmap, published in June 2026, sets out why moving home can sometimes feel so precarious. Once an offer is accepted a purchase takes around 120 days on average to complete, a journey now roughly 60% longer than it was in 2007. With the government estimating around one in three sales falls through before completion, the cost to buyers and sellers could be in the region of £400 million a year in wasted fees.

Current market data points the same way. TwentyEA recorded a national fall-through rate of 23.7% in the first quarter of 2026, close to one in four agreed sales, and found that 38% of those collapses happen within the first four weeks of a sale being agreed. The early days after an offer is accepted carry the most risk, which is why speed and a well managed process matter.

If you are buying

Move quickly. Have a mortgage agreed in principle, chose a solicitor and have your paperwork ready before you offer, then stay responsive so the gap to exchange stays short.

It’s also not uncommon for buyers to request that the seller to take the property off the market once an offer is accepted.

If you are selling

Price realistically from the start, because a fair price typically attracts the most committed buyers.

Favour a strong buyer over a marginally higher offer that is likely to wobble, keep the sale moving with an early exchange date, and if a buyer does try to reduce their offer, consider their reasons why fully.

Thinking of buying or selling in West London?

Gazumping and gazundering are far less likely when a sale is handled well from the first viewing through to exchange.

If you are planning a move in Chiswick, Hammersmith or Shepherd's Bush and want an agent who will keep things on track, get in touch with the Horton and Garton team.

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August 28, 2026