Ministers are reviewing regulations that will bring an end to time-wasting offers and will look at introducing new rules to stop people from cutting their offer at an advanced point in a sale.
Newly released figures suggest that as many as one in eight transactions this year have been subject to gazumping, being sold at least one per cent higher than that agreed at the point of Sold Subject To Contract.
Ministers will now consider new “lock-in agreements” designed to increase the trust between buyers and sellers.
Communities Secretary Sajid Javid said: “I’m sure at the Budget, we’ll be covering housing but what I want to do is make sure that we’re using everything we have available to deal with this housing crisis. We want to help everyone have a good quality home they can afford, and improving the process of buying and selling is part of delivering that.
“Buying a home is one of life’s largest investments so, if it goes wrong, it can be costly. That’s why we’re determined to make the process cheaper, faster and less stressful. This can help save people money and time so they can focus on what matters – finding their dream home. I want to hear from the industry on what more we can do to tackle this issue.”
NAEA Propertymark Chief Executive Mark Hayward commented: “We support any and all practical initiatives to improve the house buying and selling process and have engaged with Government to explore how best this can be achieved both for the consumer and the sector.”
