Nearly a third of homeowners have been gazumped, new research shows

New research has revealed that 30% of UK homeowners have been gazumped before – a sign that the frustrating trend isn’t going away anytime soon.

Indeed, earlier this year it was reported that as many as one in 10 were gazumped during their most recent home move alone.

Young house buyers of smaller homes are falling victim to the practice most frequently, which is to be expected given the lower house prices make for easier gazumping. In contrast, the research from GetAgent found only 19% of homeowners aged 55+ years had experienced gazumping when buying a house.

Despite causing huge disruption, stress and financial loss to homebuyers who experience gazumping, the act is of course legal – despite victims of gazumping losing out on the property and thousands of pounds in various fees.

The study also revealed that over three in four people (77%) think that gazumping should be made illegal in the UK.

While it was reported in January that the government was considering the introduction of voluntary reservation agreements following a pilot in 2020, any move to banish gazumping looks unlikely as of November given the near-constant changing of the guard in Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and the office of the Housing Minister.

“The consequences of gazumping can be truly devastating. Having to restart your property search after losing out on your dream home (and any money already spent on moving fees) can be really disheartening, and so it’s no wonder many don’t relax until those final contracts are signed,” said Colby Short, CEO and CoFounder of GetAgent.