Gazumping on the decline, says eMoov

The number of buyers being gazumped has fallen by 40% since October 2014, according to online estate agent eMoov.

The agency surveyed 1,000 homeowners and found that only 13% had been gazumped during their property purchase, compared to 22% in the firm's 2014 survey.

Last year, Brighton was crowned the 'gazumping capital of the UK', in this year's survey it has been replaced by Sheffield.

Just 11% of Brighton buyers said they have been gazumped this year, 68% fewer than in 2014. 

Meanwhile, in Sheffield some 29% of buyers said they have been gazumped this year, a 25% increase since 2014. 

eMoov says that the high levels of gazumping in Sheffield could be partly caused by a 35% increase in demand for property since December 2014.

Gazumping in the capital has fallen, with 17% of buyers admitting to being gazumped in 2015, 46% fewer than when the survey was last carried out in October. 

Apart from Sheffield, Plymouth and Newcastle are the only UK cities where gazumping has increased since last year.  

In Plymouth, gazumping has increased by 31%, while in Newcastle the increase is slightly lower at 27%.

According to eMoov, the lowest rate of gazumping in the UK is in Southampton at just 2%. 

The survey also revealed that the 25-34 age demographic have been most susceptible to gazumping this year with a fifth having been affected. 

What's more, those buying over the £500,000 threshold had been gazumped more than any other price bracket.

At 17% those buying over the £500,000 threshold had been gazumped more than any other price bracket.

“It will come as a surprise to many that gazumping has dropped across the nation, but a welcome surprise nevertheless. We’ve kept a close eye on the London market especially and given the lower levels of demand experienced since the start of the year, the drop in gazumping reflects that the insanity of the London market has simmered a little,” says eMoov's ceo and founder, Russell Quirk.

“In previous years property sellers, especially in London, knew that they had a queue of buyers stood outside their door.”