1) The 6% commission is negotiable. 2) In the UK, the buyer pays stamp duty (tax) on the purchase.[0] 3) You can put a bid on a property in the UK and it's no

1) The 6% commission is negotiable. 2) In the UK, the buyer pays stamp duty (tax) on the purchase.[0] 3) You can put a bid on a property in the UK and it's non-binding (until exchange)[1] In other words - very different markets with very different dynamics. [0] - I forget the percent, but it's material. This effectively disincentives people from buying, making the market less liquid. [1] - This is frankly ridiculous. (I've bought and sold in both US&UK markets)