More sales fell through in Q2: a practical handover check for agency teams

A quarterly national estimate cannot tell a negotiator whether a particular agreed sale will complete. Agency leaders can review their own fall-throughs by stage and recorded reason, alongside the number of sales agreed. A simple consistent definition matters more than a dramatic national percentage.

Discuss patterns in a team meeting without turning a buyer’s personal circumstances into a public case study. The useful question is where a timely handover or clearer update could have helped, and where the cause was outside the agency’s control.

At the point a sale is agreed, record the named colleague, the next check-in date, the chain position and the outstanding steps each party has agreed to share. Confirm information through the relevant conveyancer or qualified mortgage professional where appropriate, with the customer’s permission. Keep a dated record of what is known and what is still awaited.

A short weekly progression review helps a manager redistribute work when one negotiator has several complex chains. It also gives a new colleague a clear handover if someone is absent. Automation can prompt a follow-up, but a person should handle sensitive explanations and changes to a customer’s plans.

Explain that a sale agreed remains subject to the transaction process, and avoid promising an exchange or completion date before the parties and their advisers confirm it. If a risk emerges, tell the relevant customer what has actually changed, who is checking it and when they can expect another update.

If a sale does fall through, agree a practical remarketing plan using current local evidence and the seller’s circumstances. Track what the team learned from the case without implying that every collapse could have been prevented.