If the purchase falls through
A purchase falling through can leave you with professional work already completed, money already spent and no home at the end of it. What can be stopped, refunded or carried into another purchase depends on how far the transaction had reached and why it ended.
Confirming whether the purchase has ended
A delay, rejected renegotiation, broken chain or missed target date is not automatically a withdrawal. Ask the agent or conveyancer to confirm each party's position and what would need to happen for the transaction to continue.
Before exchange
In an ordinary England or Wales purchase, the buyer and seller are usually free to withdraw before contracts are exchanged. The buyer does not normally recover survey, search, mortgage or legal costs from the seller simply because the seller changed their mind.
Ask each provider for a final statement and any refund due under its terms. “No move, no fee” may cover the firm's professional fee while excluding searches, valuation or other third-party costs.
If the seller accepts another buyer's offer, confirm whether your transaction has ended before changing your bid. You can decide whether to make another offer within the limit you already set, but money spent so far should not determine what the property is worth or what you can afford.
Who to tell when the purchase ends
Notify the conveyancer, lender or broker, surveyor if work is still booked, and any insurer. Stop optional work that has not yet been done. If you are in a chain, the agent and conveyancer need to know whether you are withdrawing permanently or searching for a replacement property.
Your identity and source-of-funds file, mortgage advice and basic purchase budget can carry into the next attempt. The mortgage product or offer may or may not transfer to another property and will require lender approval.
A survey belongs to the property, while searches and legal work are also property-specific. Do not assume a new buyer or new property can rely on them.
If you had protection insurance
Check whether the exact reason for failure is an insured event, when the policy began, the excess, evidence needed and claim deadline. These policies do not cover every voluntary withdrawal or every cost. Notify the insurer before disposing of evidence.
What to review before making another offer
Separate the reason into borrower, property, seller or chain. If lending failed, find out whether the issue was affordability, evidence, credit, lender policy, valuation or property acceptability. If the survey or title changed your mind, turn that into a clearer viewing or search criterion.
Some reasons belong only to the home or seller you have left behind, while others could recur with a similar property or another application. Work out which kind this was before changing how you search, budget or apply next time.
If the purchase fails after exchange
Once contracts have been exchanged, failure to complete is a breach with potentially serious consequences for the deposit and other losses. Contact the conveyancer immediately. Do not rely on pre-exchange advice or attempt an informal withdrawal through the agent.
What to check for your purchase
- Confirm in writing that the buyer or seller has withdrawn, rather than assuming the purchase has ended because communication stopped.
- Ask each provider to stop any work that has not yet been done so you do not incur avoidable costs.
- Ask every provider what is payable, refundable or transferable.
- Keep the emails, invoices and evidence of why the purchase failed for any home-buyer's protection insurance claim.
- Find out why this purchase failed before changing the budget, property type or checks used in your next search.
- Get urgent legal advice if contracts were already exchanged.