Just 18 minutes to pick a home

THE red-hot property market means buyers are spending less time considering a house purchase than they do buying a pair of trousers.

Terrified that prices will soar out of their reach, buyers are putting in offers after an average of just 18 minutes viewing a £150,000 property.

In London, where panic-stricken first-time buyers live in fear of being gazumped, the decision is often hastier. Two-thirds of buyers view a property only once.

By contrast, the customer is still king on the High Street. Shoppers take on average a leisurely 22 minutes over every £150 purchase. And half of them will take a second look before buying.

Internet property finder Fish4homes, which produced the research, says the runaway housing market means some buyers take decisions they later regret. Nearly half the 4,000 homeowners surveyed wished they had looked longer before buying.

And one in four said they later ran into expensive problems that could, and should, have been spotted.

Damp, ancient wiring and faulty plumbing or heating are the most commonly overlooked disasters waiting to happen, warns Fish4homes.

Other nasty surprises that could have been detected include neighbours from hell and rat infestation.

Jodi Banfield of Fish4homes said: 'The pressure of landing a property means buyers are losing their heads. They see a property they like and they're blind to everything else.'