Almost a quarter of property transactions in England fail to complete, causing lost or delayed fees for estate agents and leaving some buyers facing thousands in additional costs, according to Rightmove.
New analysis from the property portal estimates that these fall-throughs represent a missed economic opportunity of more than £900m across England. The calculation is based on 6% of transactions that do not return to the market within a year, using last year’s total of 1.03m housing sales, an average stamp duty payment of £7,590, and an assumed estate agency commission of 1.5%.
Rightmove’s figures suggest that nearly £392 million in potential estate agent commissions and around £515m in stamp duty revenue for the government are lost due to incomplete transactions.
Separate calculations for Scotland and Wales indicate additional missed opportunities of nearly £7m and £23m, respectively, reflecting lower fall-through rates in Scotland and differences in land taxes in both countries.
Johan Svanstrom, Rightmove’s CEO says: “Our analysis highlights the scale of the economic opportunity if fall through rates can be reduced. More than one in five [23%] transactions are affected by fall throughs, costing agents either lost or delayed fees and leading to some home-movers paying thousands in repeat costs.”
Rightmove’s latest data highlights the significant potential benefits if more property chains remained intact. According to the portal, 6% of property transactions fall through and do not return to the market within 12 months, while a larger 23% initially collapse before eventually completing. These figures underline inefficiencies in the home-buying and selling process, with estate agency fees delayed or duplicated and homebuyers facing uncertainty and disruptions to key life plans.
Rightmove argues that greater digitisation and better coordination across the home-moving process are critical to reducing fall-throughs. Last year, the legal completion process for a property purchase took an average of five months from start to finish.
In its response to the government’s consultation on home-moving reforms, which closed at the end of 2025, Rightmove emphasised that digitising property transactions is essential for efficiency, transparency, and consumer confidence. The response referenced faster, more digital transaction systems in countries such as Norway, Finland, and Estonia as models for improving the UK process.
Rightmove also recommended that providing comprehensive, consistent information upfront about property listings could help reduce fall-throughs, increase transparency, and support estate agents tasked with managing complex property chains over extended periods.
Svanstrom continued: “We believe that further digitisation can help to bring this number down. Addressing it will require government investment, innovation across the transaction process, and stronger industry collaboration.
“The home‑moving journey is still slowed down by many manual and fragmented processes. A seller shouldn’t need to list their home in April to move before Christmas.
“Our mission is to build the UK’s leading digital ecosystem for the entire moving experience, creating more opportunities for our estate agency partners and helping consumers move with greater confidence and speed. We believe a more effective system and increased mobility would add to overall economic growth in the UK.”
Responding to Rightmove’s latest findings, Mary-Lou Press, NAEA Propertymark president, said the analysis highlights the very real economic and human cost of property fall-throughs.
She commented: “When a transaction collapses, it isn’t just a lost fee; it represents months of uncertainty, duplicated costs for buyers and sellers, and significant delays to people’s lives.
“Propertymark has long called for reforms to improve the speed, transparency and certainty of the home-moving process. While fall-throughs can never be eliminated entirely, many are preventable with better upfront information, improved communication between parties, and a more streamlined and digitised transaction system.
“Our member agents work tirelessly to hold chains together and guide consumers through what is often a complex and stressful process. Propertymark agents are professionally qualified, adhere to a strict Code of Practice, and are committed to delivering high standards of service that help reduce avoidable delays and breakdowns in transactions.
“We support measures that promote greater digitisation, earlier provision of material information, and stronger collaboration across the sector. However, reform must work for consumers and practitioners alike, ensuring the system is both efficient and robust. Reducing fall-throughs will not only strengthen consumer confidence but also unlock significant economic potential across the country.”
