Gazundering on the rise as homebuyers gain power in a cooling market

Homebuyers are increasingly using a tactic called gazundering to secure a lower price for their property purchase, according to Google search data.

Gazundering is when a buyer reduces their offer at a late stage of negotiations, hoping to pressure the seller into accepting less money.

It is more common when buyer demand is low, and the market favours the buyer.

The opposite of gazundering is gazumping, which is when a seller accepts a higher offer from another buyer after agreeing to sell to someone else – when the market favours the seller.

Google search terms related to home selling

Now GetAgent.co.uk, a website that compares estate agents, has analysed Google search terms related to home selling to see which ones have seen the biggest increase in popularity since the start of 2023.

The data shows that the term ‘gazundering’ has seen a 97% rise in search interest since January, based on the ‘interest score’ assigned by Google.

This score measures how popular a term is relative to the maximum search popularity for any given time and place. A score of 100 indicates maximum popularity.

The term ‘best estate agent’ has also become 17.4% more popular since January, suggesting that sellers are looking for professional help to sell their homes quickly and for a good price in a challenging market.

‘Unprecedented rise in gazumping in the UK market’

The co-founder and chief executive of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, said: “It’s not so long ago that we saw an unprecedented rise in gazumping in the UK market, with desperate buyers swooping in to outbid each other at the last minute.

“But now that market conditions have changed in the face of economic uncertainty, the power dynamic seems to have shifted in favour of the buyer.

“Hence the rising interest in ‘gazundering’ as buyers have made a last ditch offer for a lower price than originally agreed.”

He added: “It’s also fascinating to see such a large uptick in search interest for the ‘best’ estate agent.

“When conditions get tougher, we see sellers and buyers turn their attention to finding the best possible professional to help them navigate the journey and best protect their interests.”

Search popularity from homebuyers and sellers

Other terms that have seen an increase in search popularity from homebuyers and sellers are ‘property chain’ (8.5%) and ‘conveyancing’ (1.9%).

However, some terms have seen a significant drop in search popularity this year, including ‘house valuation’ (-31.8%), ‘capital gains tax’ (-29.4%), ‘stamp duty’ (-16.9%) and ‘house price’ (-13.5%).

These terms, the firm says, indicate that fewer people are interested in selling their homes or finding out how much they are worth, due to economic uncertainty and reduced market activity.

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