One in three buyers expect to encounter illegal 'ghost bids' on houses sold in open auctions

The study said that, significantly, while online bidding was seen to be more transparent by participants, they actually led to the highest bids in the experiment. This suggests a 'disconnect between beliefs and behaviour'. Picture: iStock

First-time home buyers are often forced to overbid and pay over the odds because of open auctions preferred by auctioneers and online platforms.

The research by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), which was funded by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), also found one in three house hunters expect to compete with "ghost bids", with many taking on more financial risk to land their dream home.