What does the phrase "upward chain" mean, in the field of real estate?

Answer 1

Hi there

when you buy someones property it is often the case that you need someone to buy your property, and in turn that person may need someone to buy their property. This is a chain of buy and sell transactions, in the case what I have described it would be the lower chain.

The upper chain is very similar. The person whose property you are buying may in turn be buying someone else's property, and they in turn someone else's property. This creates the upward chain.

Long chains of buyers and sellers can really slow down the buying or selling of your property because any one in the chain could hit a 'problem' and then the whole chain is held up. For example someone in the "upward chain" may have a problem with the survey of the house they are buying and now need to re-negotiate the price. You will often see properties advertised as chain free, this is because the seller is not buying another property, there is no "upward chain".

I hope this helps.

Answer 2

No Upward Chain

Answer 3

The upward chain are the people who are in the chain above the buyer.... i.e. the chain of people buying houses from the buyeras opposed to the downward chain which is the people buying houses from the seller.....

Answer 4

It means that the owners of the property you are buying are buying somewhere else and as such might delay your purchase.