It’s an open secret between estate agents that most of the best properties sell off-market. Indeed, it’s estimated that one in five London homes sell this way - without ever being shown on Rightmove and Zoopla.

Why so many? Well, when a new property is taken on, it’s natural for an agent to call the buyers they know first. They’ve shown them properties before so they know what will suit, and they know if they’re motivated. It works for sellers too, since the first buyers through the door will often pay the most, and they avoid the danger of the property sitting around on the open market for months on end - going stale is every seller’s worst nightmare.

All makes sense. But there’s a problem. What if a seller accepts an offer off-market when in fact there was another buyer the agent didn’t know about, or had forgotten to call, that would have paid more? What if that buyer was you?