Ah, good point, I certainly should have said England rather than UK. Interesting that the Scottish system locks in price at the start, I wasn't aware of that -

Ah, good point, I certainly should have said England rather than UK. Interesting that the Scottish system locks in price at the start, I wasn't aware of that - as my edit said, I didn't realise it could even be possible. Edit: Looking into it a bit more, gazumping is rarer but not impossible in Scotland, and I don't think it's quite right to say the contract is legally binding at step 1. Things are a bit different because much of the work to determine the property's condition is done by the seller, not the buyer, in advance of offers, and many estate agents are apparently also convenyancing solicitors. And it seems gazumping is legally allowed until the contract is signed, but then the seller would need to change solicitor which acts as a disincentive.