Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by PropertyWire. Read the original article for full details.
Self-Employed Estate Agents Achieve Higher Completion Rates, Data Shows
Self-employed estate agents are achieving higher sale completion rates and faster transaction times than their traditionally employed counterparts, according to new data from property analytics firm TwentyEA. Despite these results, self-employed agents currently make up only a small proportion of the UK property market.
The analysis by TwentyEA found that self-employed agents had a 65.2% likelihood of completing a sale, compared to 53.1% for traditionally employed agents. Transactions handled by self-employed agents were also completed more quickly, averaging 142 days, while the wider industry average was 152 days.
In terms of pricing, self-employed agents achieved 97.71% of the asking price on properties sold, compared to 95.97% for traditional agents. Fall-through rates were also lower for self-employed agents at 21.29%, versus 23.63% for the broader market.
Despite these performance metrics, self-employed agents account for just 2.8% of the national market. However, the sector has seen notable growth over the past year. Wales recorded the largest increase in market share for self-employed agents at 48.4%, followed by Outer London at 45.3% and the South East at 39.5%.
Nick Huntley, Director of TwentyEA, said the figures reflect changing business structures within the sector. The data suggests a shift in how estate agency services are being delivered, with some agents moving away from traditional employment models. This trend comes as the property sector continues to adapt to changing market conditions, including recent legislative changes affecting the rental market.
While the performance differences may be attributed to self-employed agents’ direct financial stake in each transaction and greater autonomy in managing client relationships, the sector’s small market share indicates that traditional agency models remain dominant across the UK property market. The findings provide insight into alternative business structures within the estate agency sector, though further analysis would be needed to determine whether these performance metrics remain consistent as the self-employed segment expands.
Source: PropertyWire