Buying position explained

Getting the best price is the primary objective for most sellers, but there are other important factors to consider, including your buyer's position. So before you accept an offer, take a look at the different types of buyers, what this means for their buying position and how to deal with their offers.

Angela Kerr Director, Editor

What does buying position mean?

When you are considering offers from home buyers, you will want to know their buying position — that is how ready they are to proceed with buying your property. Being ready to buy often means that they are either a first time buyer, they’ve already sold their current home or they don’t need to sell their current home to proceed with the purchase. We look at the buying position of different types of home buyers and what this means when considering offers.

Different types of home buyers

There are three main types of home buyers:

• First time buyers
• Those funding the purchase of your home with cash from the sale of their home
• Cash buyers, those buying outright using cash, often investors

First time buyers – buying position

First time buyers, whether renting or living with their parents, are often seen as being in a good buying position as they are chain-free. As a seller, the process of selling your home should therefore be quicker. Your estate agent will need to check a prospective buyer’s situation, identity and also that they are financially able to proceed with the purchase by checking they have a mortgage agreement in principle.

If your buyer is in rented accommodation, then they should be able to move quite quickly and have the benefit of being chain free. Don’t make assumptions though. Check on their situation, plans and expectations for when they want to complete. They could have a fixed term tenancy which can’t be extended and even if it can be extended, it may be for a minimum three or six month period, which could make your buyer reluctant to complete quickly.

It’s a good idea to line up your conveyancing solicitor early in the selling process. Use our free tool to get instant quotes from quality assured conveyancers that cover your area.

The buying position of buyers in a chain

One of the key factors when looking at the buying position of different types of buyers is whether or not they are in a chain. Anyone who needs to sell their property before they can buy yours is in a chain. It may only be a chain of one, i.e. their buyer, or it could be a chain of ten. Usually the longer the chain, the greater the risk of delays or worse, your sale falling through.

The selling position of those within the chain is also key. A chain of six, where each party has solicitors well advanced with searches and contracts, surveys carried out, half of them already in receipt of their mortgage offers (but with plenty of time until they expire) can be a much lower risk than a chain of three where no-one has had a survey carried out and each party has incurred little financial cost. Get your estate agent to do some digging on their buying position and report back before you accept an offer. And take a look at our guide on how to break the housing chain.

Cash buyers

Cash buyers are often the most attractive type of buyer in terms of buying position, although you may find you end up accepting a lower offer in exchange for the greater security and flexibility you’ll get. It’s important your estate agent gets confirmation of the funding situation from a professional acting for your buyer, such as their accountant, solicitor or bank, before accepting any offer.

In January 2023, cash buyers accounted for 38.5 per cent of all transactions, while mortgaged home movers had dropped to 25.3 per cent, significantly down from their March 2021 share of 34 per cent. This trend is likely to continue until interest rates and mortgage rates begin to improve (data UK Finance/ HMRC reported by Savills).

What else should I consider when accepting an offer?

In addition to the buying position, there are some key questions to ask before accepting an offer:

1. Is the offer the highest you are likely to achieve? Be sure to negotiate to get the best offer. It’s fairly standard for buyers to make a lower opening offer and then negotiate upwards on price. So make sure you negotiate the highest price you can before accepting an offer on a house. 
2. Are you satisfied with the offer? A good estate agent will guide you on how good the final offer is in the current local market. It’s important to take their advice but you have the final decision as to whether you accept it or not.
3. What’s your buyers’ timescale for moving? Ask about the buyer’s timescale for moving before accepting an offer on a house. For example, if they have already agreed a sale on their home, how far along is this process? If you have a date you want to have moved by, are they likely to be able to fit in with that?

See our guide to accepting an offer for everything to consider.

When does an offer become binding?

The buyer – and indeed you, the seller – can pull out of the transaction at any time before the  exchange of contracts. This is quite late in the process, when money and time has been spent on surveys, local searches, legal fees and negotiations. But it isn’t until all this work has been done and contracts exchanged that both parties are legally bound to honour the agreement of selling/buying the property to/from each other.

Home Sellers Protection Insurance can provide some protection against the loss of legal fees if your sale falls through, and if you are buying a house at the same time, Home Buyers Protection is worth considering.

As a seller, there are a number of factors for you to consider to help prevent things from going wrong and to help get to the point of exchange as quickly as possible:

• Move quickly to secure the finances you need for your onward purchase, get started with your mortgage application asap
• Make sure you instruct a conveyancing solicitor asap
• Respond to requests for information from your solicitor quickly and honestly and complete and return the paperwork sent to you as quickly as possible, for both your sale and your purchase
• Stay on top of the transaction and in communication with all the key parties

How can buying position affect how long it takes to sell my home?

Buying position can also affect the speed of sale. A sale should proceed quickest with a cash buyer, especially if they are an investor used to purchasing properties. First time buyers are also appealing if you are in a hurry, while sales with those in chains take the longest.

Given the range of different factors at play when buying and selling a home, plus the number of people and professionals involved and the issues that can come up along the way, the length of time it takes to sell can really vary. We’ve researched the average timelines for each step to give you some idea of what to expect and how to speed things along – see our guide on How long does it take to buy and sell a home.

Watch out for gazundering

Gazundering is when a buyer lowers their offer at the last minute, just before contracts are exchanged. Sellers, conscious of the fact refusing the new lower offer could mean they are back at square one and an entire chain falling apart, often feel forced to accept. Read our guide on Gazundering and how to avoid it for more advice.

The number one piece of advice? Stay on top of your transaction and help by responding quickly and chasing things up. It’s important that the sale is not allowed to drift. If it does, there is a much greater risk it will not happen at all.