The average time it takes for a property sale to progress from offer agreed to exchange of contracts has exceeded 100 days for the first time on record, according to new research from Connells Group, with leasehold transactions continuing to drive much of the delay across the market.
The data shows the average home that exchanged contracts in April had spent 104 days progressing through the conveyancing process after going under offer, marking the first April on record where the national average has moved beyond the 100-day threshold.
The figure represents a sharp increase from 76 days in April 2019 and is around four weeks longer than pre-pandemic transaction times, highlighting the growing strain on the home buying and selling process.
Connells Group says the increase reflects a combination of longer chains, tighter compliance requirements and additional legal checks, with leasehold transactions proving particularly problematic.
SYSTEM BOTTLENECK
Leasehold homes took an average of 155 days to reach exchange in April, compared with 97 days for freehold properties, creating a record 58-day gap between the two.
The figures also highlight a growing number of transactions becoming stuck in the system for extended periods. Some 17% of homes now take more than six months to exchange contracts after going under offer, up from 13% a year ago and more than three times the level recorded a decade ago.
At the same time, late-stage transaction failures are becoming increasingly common. Nearly one in four fall-throughs (23%) now occur more than three months after a sale has been agreed, compared with 18% in 2019.
HIGHER FALL-THROUGHS
Leasehold transactions continue to see significantly higher fall-through rates than freehold sales. In 2025, 43% of agreed leasehold sales failed to complete, compared with 36% of freehold transactions.
Connells Group says many of these issues are linked to the complexity of leasehold transactions, including delays obtaining management information and additional legal scrutiny, particularly in markets with high concentrations of flats such as London and other major urban centres.
The research also points to mortgage market uncertainty beginning to widen the gap between cash and financed purchases once again. Homes bought with a mortgage took nine days longer to exchange than cash purchases in April, although this remains below the 15-day gap seen during the height of mortgage market volatility in 2022.
DRAWN-OUT PROCESS
Aneisha Beveridge (main picture, inset), Research Director at Connells Group, says: “For the first time on record, it is now taking more than 100 days, on average, for a sale to progress from offer agreed to exchange.
“That highlights how much more drawn-out the transaction process has become, particularly since the pandemic. Extra checks, longer chains and tighter legal and compliance requirements are all adding time, with leasehold purchases standing out as the biggest contributor to delays.”
ADDED UNCERTAINTY
She adds: “The knock-on effect is that buyers and sellers are left exposed for longer once a deal is agreed, and we’re increasingly seeing more transactions collapse later in the process.
“As sales take longer to work their way through the system, buyers become more exposed to changes in mortgage rates and house prices if conditions shift during that period.
“That extended uncertainty builds further down the line. This doesn’t just matter for the housing market itself – delayed or failed moves can also weigh on consumer confidence, labour mobility and, ultimately, wider economic growth.”
