Why Sales Fall Apart: The Cost of Poor Seller Preparation

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If you’re thinking of selling a property, then my advice is simple: get better prepared.

And I don’t mean cleaning the place, rearranging the furniture, or working out clever tricks to get viewers to fall in love with your home. I mean doing the things that really matter, the things that determine whether a sale actually completes or quietly falls apart.

Over the years, I’ve seen perfectly reasonable buyers agree to purchase a property, only to pull out weeks or months later because the transaction is dragging on. Often, they convince themselves that the seller isn’t serious about moving.

In some cases, that may be true. But far more often, it isn’t. The real issue is that the seller was never properly advised on how to prepare for the legal process of selling a home.

What genuinely horrifies me is how reluctant many estate agents are to truly get involved in helping sellers become better prepared, and the reasons behind it.

Estate agents love the glory of agreeing a sale. The celebrations, the social media posts, the chest-beating about how many sales they’ve secured. And yes, well done.

But let’s be clear: a sale agreed is not someone moving home. It’s a weak promise that things might be heading in the right direction.

There are hundreds of avoidable issues that can arise during conveyancing. Combine those with transaction timescales that are already far too long, and tensions rise, frustrations build, and everyone starts looking for someone to blame. Brand damage becomes a real concern, and it’s far easier for an estate agent to point the finger at the conveyancer than to accept any responsibility themselves.

I can almost hear it now: “We got the sale agreed , everything was fine, it’s the conveyancer’s fault.”

So let’s look at what’s really happening inside property lawyers’ offices.

Estate agents often spend weeks, sometimes months, marketing a property. That is valuable time, time that could be used to help sellers prepare for the conveyancing process. But in many cases, nothing is done.

More often than not, the first time a conveyancer hears about a sale is when a memorandum of sale lands in their inbox from the estate agent.

A memorandum of sale confirms the basic details: buyer, seller, price, conveyancers, and any agreed conditions. Ideally, it would also include a chain sheet showing everyone involved, from a first-time buyer at the bottom to a vacant property at the top.

In the past, sales weren’t agreed until chains were complete and everyone could prove they could move. Those days, sadly, are largely gone. A proper chain sheet is now a rare thing indeed.

I’ve spent years working closely with conveyancing firms, and I’ve seen memorandums of sale arrive for clients they’ve never heard of. I’ve seen firms receive details for clients they’ve quoted for, but who haven’t formally instructed them. In some cases, the firm doesn’t even know whether they can act, because they don’t know the lender, the source of funds, or even the type of property involved.

And yet, incredibly, I’ve also seen estate agents chasing those same firms for updates the very next day, on transactions they aren’t even instructed on. It’s a complete waste of everyone’s time.

So, if you’re selling a property, here’s the key message: use the time before marketing wisely.

Step one should always be to instruct a conveyancer early. Why? Because you need to become contract ready.

When a sale is agreed, your conveyancer must issue a contract pack to the buyer’s conveyancer. That pack includes a draft contract, title documents, title plan, a Property Information Form (TA6), Fixtures and Fittings Form (TA10), and copies of guarantees, warranties, and completion certificates.

If the property is leasehold, it will also include a Leasehold Information Form (TA7) and details of the managing agent’s pack.

And here’s the part no one warns you about: you have to complete those forms and find that paperwork. That takes time.

For many sellers, the first they hear about this is when those forms suddenly land in their inbox, often after a sale has already been agreed.

That’s not all. Your conveyancer also needs to verify your identity, confirm ownership, and if they’re acting on an onward purchase, check source of funds and lender requirements. None of this can happen instantly.

I’ve been saying for well over a decade that sellers need to be better prepared before they go to market. Not just because there’s a lot to do, but because failing to prepare properly can delay issuing contracts, frustrate buyers, and ultimately derail transactions altogether.

And then the shouting starts. Estate agents blame conveyancers. Conveyancers get buried under pressure. And buyers walk away.

Thankfully, at the time of recording this episode, the Government is reviewing the home buying and selling process. It’s very likely that sellers will be required to be better prepared, more transparent about their property, and to provide key information, such as local authority searches and environmental reports, upfront.

If you are serious about selling, and serious about getting to completion without unnecessary delays, then take responsibility. Instruct a good conveyancer, not one dealing with excessive volumes. Complete your paperwork early. Pass your ID and source-of-funds checks. Gather your guarantees and certificates. Obtain an environmental report and get your local authority search underway.

Your estate agent is unlikely to explain all of this to you, often for fear of losing your instruction.

But I would argue that the agent who does explain it is the one you should trust. That’s the agent who actually wants to help you move home, and the one who truly stands out from the rest.

Thanks for listening to this episode of Moving Home, Uncovered. If you found this useful, subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes, and head over to propertysearchesdirect.co.uk/podcast to send me your questions. I’ll cover them in future episodes to help make moving home a smoother, less stressful experience for everyone.