Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Team from a report by PropertyWire. Read the original article for full details.
Rightmove Updates Website Descriptions After Rival's Challenge
Rightmove has removed website wording that claimed to feature "over 900,000 properties for sale" and "over 200,000 properties to rent" following a challenge from property-discovery platform MyPorta. Public archives indicate the sales wording was first used in April 2010 and the rental wording in July 2010.
Both descriptions remained in Rightmove's search engine metadata until 2026, when MyPorta challenged the claims in September. The descriptions have since been updated.
MyPorta's Challenge
Mal McCallion, founder and chief executive of MyPorta, stated: "We regard these as clearly misleading claims. Rightmove claimed it had 1.1m properties 'for sale' and 'to rent'. Consumers were entitled to take those words at face value."
McCallion noted that the same wording had been used without verification for 16 years. During that period, Rightmove's reported average monthly revenue per advertiser increased from £379 to £1,726, approximately 355%.
"These increases were made possible by Rightmove's traffic claims. How much of that traffic was from consumers believing they were seeing more of the market than they actually were?" McCallion said.
Market Implications
The challenge raises questions about how portal listing claims may influence agent advertising decisions and costs. The property portal sector has seen consolidation in recent years, with platforms competing for agent listings and consumer traffic.
MyPorta operates as a free listing platform for agents. The service uses artificial intelligence to match user descriptions with available properties, directing enquiries to the advertising agent's page. McCallion previously served as sales director at Zoopla.
The development comes as the property industry faces broader scrutiny over transparency and costs. Recent discussions have included calls for stamp duty reform and changes to rental market regulations.
Rightmove's Response
Rightmove responded in a statement: "This related to a small number of historic meta descriptions embedded within our website, which have since been updated."
The incident highlights increasing competition in the property portal market, where traffic claims and listing volumes form the basis of agent subscription pricing. The outcome may prompt other platforms to review their marketing claims and metadata accuracy.
Source: PropertyWire