Short Pause Before Marketing Often Saves the Sale
Without a pre-sale survey, the timeline often looks like this:
The property is listed quickly;
Viewings go well;
An offer is agreed;
The conveyancing process begins.
Then, several weeks later, the buyer’s survey introduces new information. The vendor hasn’t seen it before, hasn’t priced for it, and hasn’t had time to think it through. What follows is familiar, delays while quotes are obtained, negotiations reopen, confidence drops, chains stall. In many cases, the sale never recovers.
The issue isn’t the survey — it’s that the information arrives at the worst possible moment.
What Changes When the Survey Is Done First
Now compare that with a vendor who commissions a RICS Home Survey before the property is marketed.
Whilst marketing may start a week or two later, during that time, the vendor gets clarity. They understand what will be flagged, what actually matters, and what doesn’t. They have the option to correct issues, price accordingly, or simply be prepared to explain them.
From an agent’s perspective, this changes everything.
When an offer is agreed, there is no sudden shift weeks later. The transaction continues on the same footing it started: informed, predictable, and far less volatile.
This is the “one step back, two steps forward” effect. A small pause at the beginning removes the long, costly pauses that usually appear halfway through the deal.
Why This Protects Your Time and Your Fee
Agents don’t lose fees because properties have issues. They lose fees because uncertainty appears late, when chains are fragile and emotions are high.
A vendor-led survey helps prevent that by:
Reducing renegotiations after offer acceptance
Improving buyer confidence and commitment
Shortening the overall progression period
Lowering fall-through risk
The sale may not launch quite as fast, but it is far more likely to reach completion.
The Practical Takeaway
Encouraging a vendor to commission a survey before marketing can feel like slowing things down. In practice, it is often the reason a sale doesn’t slow down later — or fall apart entirely.
For agents, this isn’t about adding friction. It’s about removing the avoidable risks that cost time, energy, and fees.
A small pause at the start can make the difference between a sale that drags on for months and one that actually completes.
The Reality of a Typical Sale Timeline
We provide vendor-led RICS Home Surveys that are clear, proportionate, and commercially useful. The aim is not to overstate issues, but to give vendors — and agents — clarity before it can cause disruption.
We work with agents who want:
Stronger, more reliable instructions
Fewer stalled transactions
Less time spent firefighting mid-sale
We also offer a referral fee for surveys introduced through your agency. This is handled transparently and provides an additional revenue stream while improving the stability of your pipeline.
Want to share this with your client? Download a free one page copy of the important points HERE.
Why Choose to Refer Vendors to Us
Case Study
West London, Ealing W5
We were instructed by the vendor of a 3 storey Victorian property to provide a Level 3 RICS Home Survey report following the sale of their property falling through.
The vendor (owner) was advised by the estate agent that the buyer's survey report had highlighted a severe issue which knocked their confidence in the property. The buyer was unwilling to provide further information.
Upon our arrival, we were given a tour of the property and able to highlight the potential issue, which was a reflective sticker applied to the flank wall of the property used to monitor any signs of movement whilst the neighbour was erecting a rear extension - a requirement of the Party Wall Agreement at the time.
We highlighted this fact to the vendor and reconfirmed consent to start our inspection (which would otherwise result in a fee reduction). Our inspection revealed no other major concerns, just typical maintenance matters expected of a building of such a design and age.
What does this mean?
In our opinion, from the surveyor's perspective, the reflective sticker had potentially signaled an on-going or historic concern with the structure of the property.
The surveyor did not question the vendor regarding this matter, understandably as permission is typically required from the buyer to reveal information commissioned on their behalf.
This 'unknown matter' would have reduced the buyer's confidence in the property which they were unwilling to discuss further, possibly trying to 'put the matter to bed' and continue on with their property search.
N.B. Whilst this is an obvious case where the vendor would have benefited from a pre-purchase Home Survey, matters of maintenance can all add up leading to renegotiation and delay.
N.B. The Home Survey report is for the client only and cannot be shared or relied upon by a third party, unless express consent is given, which can become complex for the surveyor when considering liability, hence another reason for the unwillingness of the buyer to share findings.
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