What does the term chain mean when buying a house?
When you buy a house, the people that are selling it will usually be moving somewhere else, as will the people they are buying their new house from, etc etc. Unless they are cash buyers, most people’s ability to move house will depend on them selling their existing property to partly finance the new home. If the sale of their property falls through, this may mean they will not be able to sell their property to you. So the chain is the houses which are linked to the house you are looking to buy – if one of the ‘linked’ sales falls through, this may affect the house you are looking to buy as the sellers may then have to find a new buyer before they can sell. Disclaimer: The answers above are for guidance only and should not be acted upon without you receiving professional mortgage advice relevant to your circumstances.
