The Competition and Markets Authority has raised an unusual issue concerning Barratt’s £2.5 billion deal to buy rival house builder Redrow...
Archive
09 August 2024
From: Breaking News
![Foxtons: 'We have returned as London's top agent'](/upload/images/shutterstock_2246876519.jpg)
Foxtons has recorded a 31% annual increase in the value of its under offer pipeline during the first couple of months...
06 March 2024
From: Breaking News
![If lettings are to be dominated by mega-business, what about us hard working independents and our customers?](/upload/images/3%20Proofed%20--%20If%20lettings%20are%20to%20be%20dominated%20by%20mega-business%20weekend%20feature%20By%20Jon%20Byers.jpg)
On the 24th of January, Adam Walker wrote a very interesting piece about the consolidation of the lettings industry where he...
10 February 2024
From: Features
![Yopa restructures as Grenville Turner departs](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Property%20Market/BusinessTeam-400x310.png)
Yopa has detailed a restructure of its business after chairman Grenville Turner mysteriously stepped down as a director. Companies House documents last...
08 January 2024
From: Breaking News
![Winkworth launches franchisee talent drive](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Property%20Market/Franchise-400x310.png)
Winkworth has launched a talent drive to find rising stars to build a career and a business within the franchise network. The...
30 November 2023
From: Breaking News
![Shareholders call for Foxtons to be sold](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Property%20Market/PropertyNews3-400x310.png)
Foxtons shareholders are reportedly putting the board under pressure to put the agency brand up for sale Two shareholders who own a...
20 November 2023
From: Breaking News
![Marketing guru: ‘Why Strike brand must be retired for Purplebricks’](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Property%20Market/PropertyNews2-400x310.png)
Marketing expert Simon Leadbetter has recommended that Purplebricks absorb its owner’s brand to consolidate its market position. Leadbetter, former group marketing director...
12 September 2023
From: Breaking News
![Callwell expands Connells Group relationship](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Property%20Market/PropertyNews-400x310.png)
Lead consolidation platform Callwell has signed a new long-term agreement that sees functionality extended throughout the enlarged Connells Group network including...
02 February 2023
From: Breaking News
![Conveyancing Association reveals conference agenda](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Rental%20Market/MillenialAgents1-400x310.png)
Consolidation and industry challenges are among the key themes to be tackled at The Conveyancing Association’s (CA) annual conference next month...
27 January 2023
From: Breaking News
![It's a date! Conveyancing Association unveils Annual Conference details](/upload/images/Shutterstock-only%20images/Rental%20Market/Happy_EstateAgent-400x310.png)
The Conveyancing Association has set a date for its 2023 Annual Conference. It will take place in London on 7 February 2023...
29 November 2022
From: Breaking News
![Industry veteran warns technology has made some agents lazy](/upload/images/PropTech%20%26%20Online/Smartphone-Technology-400x310.jpg)
Former Countrywide boss Bob Scarff has warned that estate agents have become too reliant on alerts, emails and text messages for...
07 July 2022
From: Breaking News
![Fast-growing London agents make strategic acquisitions](/upload/images/Housing%20Market%20%26%20Property%20Images/PropertyTransaction-400x310.jpg)
Two London agencies have announced acquisitions as consolidation in the capital continues apace. Dexters has six new branches after the acquisition of...
30 November 2021
From: Breaking News
![The post-Covid outlook: what next for the lettings market?](/img/default/eat.png)
Our long-awaited ‘Freedom Day’ approaches. From Monday all of the restrictions, introduced since the Covid-19 pandemic made an impact across the...
17 July 2021
From: Features
![Property Natter – 5 ways estate agency has changed since May 2020](/img/default/eat.png)
It’s now over a year since the property market officially reopened after an unprecedented two-month shutdown at the height of the...
22 May 2021
From: Features
![Sam Hunter – ‘does Homesearch pass the Ronseal test? Yes, we do’](/img/default/eat.png)
In this week’s In Conversation Today, I speak to someone who has made an excellent impression on the property industry in...
13 May 2021
From: Breaking News
![Agency Consolidation - Rival commuter belt brands join forces](/img/default/eat.png)
Hertfordshire based agency Ashtons has acquired an independent agency operating in the same county, Aitchisons Residential. Aitchisons’ offices in St Albans and...
30 April 2021
From: Breaking News
![Property Natter: why agency must never become a closed shop](/img/default/eat.png)
The biggest news story in town this last week – which has brought people who don’t usually like or watch football...
24 April 2021
From: Features
![Adrian Gill – talking agency consolidation, PropTech, retail and Boomin](/img/default/eat.png)
This time out, I speak to one of the industry’s biggest-hitters. Adrian Gill may have retired from frontline agency, having had...
15 April 2021
From: Breaking News
![Another agency takeover as industry consolidation goes on](/img/default/eat.png)
Welsh independent agency Nuttall Parker has been snapped up by Cardiff-based property business Seraph Group. Newport-centred Nuttall Parker is Seraph Group's second...
01 April 2021
From: Breaking News
![Consolidation in PropTech as live chat provider is snapped up](/img/default/eat.png)
Agency marketing platform BriefYourMarket has acquired live chat and customer experience provider Yomdel. BriefYourMarket says the addition of Yomdel to its offer...
25 March 2021
From: Breaking News
![Watch: Ed Mead talks PropTech and Foxtons' acquisition of D&G](/img/default/eat.png)
In a video interview for Estate Agent Today, property professional Chris Buckler speaks to Ed Mead, all-round property guru and founder...
20 March 2021
From: Features
![More industry consolidation: Law firm reveals merger with agency](/img/default/eat.png)
Legal firm Anderson Strathern has announced a merger with Lerwick-based Neil Risk Solicitor and Estate Agent. The Shetland firm's practice areas focus on residential...
11 March 2021
From: Breaking News
![Takeover fever continues as biggest agencies seal deals](/img/default/eat.png)
The extraordinary consolidation in the estate agency industry continues apace today with two of the biggest deals reaching critical points. Firstly Hunters’...
08 March 2021
From: Breaking News
![Why don’t agencies list on the stock market anymore?](/img/default/eat.png)
There’s been a flurry of recent activity involving agencies quoted on the London Stock Exchange: Hunters, The Property Franchise Group and...
23 January 2021
From: Features
![In Conversation Today – Q&A with the man behind a 2020 success story](/img/default/eat.png)
By any available metric, Belvoir had a good 2020. Already a well-known and well-established name, it was highly praised for its...
21 January 2021
From: Breaking News
![You guessed it…10 things to watch for in 2021](/img/default/eat.png)
Here’s hoping you managed to have as good a Christmas and New Year as Covid rules allowed. Journalism in early January is...
02 January 2021
From: Features
![Referral fee transparency shows why panel management is outdated](/img/default/eat.png)
The latest review by the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team into referral fees places the outdated practice of...
10 October 2020
From: Features
![Autumn 2020 - seven things to watch](/img/default/eat.png)
It’s no surprise the mainstream news remains dominated by coronavirus - not so much the actual effect of it right now,...
05 September 2020
From: Features
![PropTech Today: uncertain times to accelerate mergers and failures](/img/default/eat.png)
We live in uncertain times. That I do not need to say to anybody. I am writing this piece aboard my...
11 March 2020
From: Breaking News
![How will the coronavirus affect estate agents?](/img/default/eat.png)
The coronavirus outbreak has highlighted once again how fragile and interconnected our societies have become. We don’t know yet how dangerous Covid-19...
07 March 2020
From: Features
![Blood and branches will be shed in Countrywide merger, experts predict](/img/default/eat.png)
Some of the biggest figures in the industry have given Estate Agent Today their reaction to the news - broken yesterday...
24 February 2020
From: Breaking News
![Countrywide, two years after Platt - time for the last rites?](/img/default/eat.png)
In six years of editing Estate Agent Today, some of my most dramatic moments have been covering the troubles - some...
11 January 2020
From: Features
![Countrywide share price soars from 7p to 360p - and here’s why](/img/default/eat.png)
Countrywide’s share price yesterday went from little over 7p to 360p in one fell swoop. Is it the end of uncertainty about...
31 December 2019
From: Breaking News
![Five things to watch for in 2020](/img/default/eat.png)
A new year dawns - but will 2020 bring new change for the agency industry now that the market appears to...
28 December 2019
From: Features
![Countrywide delays meeting to confirm sale of Lambert Smith Hampton](/img/default/eat.png)
Countrywide has this morning revealed that its special general meeting of shareholders to agree the sale of its commercial arm will...
03 December 2019
From: Breaking News
![Cash-strapped Countrywide sells commercial arm, extends credit facility](/img/default/eat.png)
Cash-strapped Countrywide has this morning announced that it is selling its commercial business, Lambert Smith Hampton, for £38m. In a surprise statement...
29 November 2019
From: Breaking News
![Portals: Agents slammed for losing out via stock market floats](/img/default/eat.png)
The Great Debate over the charges levied on agents by portals and the huge profits that Rightmove and Zoopla make has...
20 November 2019
From: Breaking News
![Conveyancers report big drop in transactions as Brexit hits home](/img/default/eat.png)
There’s been a significant drop in the number of housing transactions dealt with by conveyancers in the first nine months of...
19 November 2019
From: Breaking News
![Purplebricks, Housesimple and Yopa must merge to survive - claim](/img/default/eat.png)
The former chief of an online estate agency says the top three surviving firms in the sector must merge if they...
30 October 2019
From: Breaking News
![Major foreign estate agency poised to re-enter UK market](/img/default/eat.png)
One of the most high profile estate agencies in the Republic of Ireland says it may re-enter the UK market after...
25 October 2019
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: Is PropTech about to burst?](/img/default/eat.png)
There are those who say that PropTech is at risk of becoming a bubble market, and others who say bubbles don’t...
18 September 2019
From: Breaking News
![Agency super-merger as regional independent firms link-up](/img/default/eat.png)
Two of the highest profile independent estate agencies in the north of England have merged following a spectacular acquisition. Linley & Simpson...
17 July 2019
From: Breaking News
![Property Natter - talking women in property, Brexit investment and PropTech](/img/default/eat.png)
In the first Q&A Natter for a while, I catch up with Angelica Donati - CEO of Donati Immobiliare Group, PropTech...
01 June 2019
From: Features
![Conveyancer consolidation means 200 firms control 39% of house moves](/img/default/eat.png)
Just 200 conveyancing firms control over 39 per cent of the market in England and Wales, wielding significant power over customers,...
30 May 2019
From: Breaking News
![Zoopla in multi-million pound software shake-up for agents](/img/default/eat.png)
Zoopla is today unveiling what it calls “a new direction” for its software division and the creation of “market-leading agency CRM...
23 May 2019
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: Market disruption do’s, don’ts and value propositions](/img/default/eat.png)
We’ve reached the final instalment of my market transformation do’s and don’ts. In previous articles, we’ve looked at: Do encourage, don’t deter;...
22 May 2019
From: Breaking News
![More details emerge on Countrywide’s closure programme](/img/default/eat.png)
Further details of Countrywide's closure and consolidation programme, first revealed by Estate Agent Today on Friday, have emerged over the weekend. A...
13 May 2019
From: Breaking News
![Marsh & Parsons bucks market trend by opening 31st London office](/img/default/eat.png)
One of the capital's best-known agents, Marsh & Parsons, has expanded its network with a new office in Streatham Hill, South...
10 May 2019
From: Breaking News
![Independent agencies merge as industry consolidation gathers pace](/img/default/eat.png)
Sales and lettings firm The Grantley Group has purchased lettings and management agency Property Services Haslemere in the latest example of...
29 April 2019
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: Do’s & Don’ts of transformation - Countrywide, Foxtons](/img/default/eat.png)
It’s not often we can enjoy beautiful sunshine on bank holidays, but I suppose this one was a particularly blessed weekend,...
24 April 2019
From: Breaking News
![Agent avoids fall-throughs by making sellers and buyers shake hands on deals](/img/default/eat.png)
A London estate agent says his system of ‘moral agreements’ between sellers and buyers prevents chains collapsing and means his company has...
08 February 2019
From: Breaking News
![Six things to watch for in 2019](/img/default/eat.png)
Hello and welcome to 2019. These are less predictions and more expectations - developments following on from what’s happened in the past...
31 December 2018
From: Features
![Conveyancing crisis as number of firms hit eight-year low](/img/default/eat.png)
The number of active conveyancing firms handling property transactions in England and Wales has fallen to an eight year low. A market...
13 December 2018
From: Breaking News
![Emoov was never going to find a buyer, says leading agency analyst](/img/default/eat.png)
The demise of Emoov, Tepilo and lettings platform Urban raises question marks over the long-term viability of online agencies according to...
04 December 2018
From: Breaking News
![‘Only fittest will survive’ says agent making eighth acquisition of 2018](/img/default/eat.png)
Yorkshire agency Linley & Simpson is on the acquisition trail yet again - and it’s revealed its eighth deal of the...
23 November 2018
From: Breaking News
![eProp cements PropTech role as well as running Guild and Fine & Country](/img/default/eat.png)
A statement to the London Stock Exchange by eProp Services has cemented its role primarily as a PropTech firm. This is in...
28 September 2018
From: Breaking News
![Exclusive: estate agencies closing - data shows how many and where](/img/default/eat.png)
Data prepared for the BBC and shared with Estate Agent Today gives a snapshot of how estate agencies, lettings agencies and...
01 August 2018
From: Breaking News
![easyProperty names new agency chief as online shake-out continues](/img/default/eat.png)
The online agency shake-out and consolidation continues apace. Former YOPA director Russell Humphrey has been named as the managing director of estate...
05 June 2018
From: Breaking News
![It’s happening in the US too - a new portal and industry consolidation](/img/default/eat.png)
A recent holiday in the US gave me an opportunity to catch up with property news over there - and surprisingly,...
02 June 2018
From: Features
![Purplebricks is changing: Which way will it go?](/img/default/eat.png)
As always seems to be the case with Purplebricks, the hybrid agency has had a good week...and a bad one. Undeniably impressive...
31 March 2018
From: Features
![Franchise model well-suited to challenging market, says leading agency](/img/default/eat.png)
Winkworth, the agency which released its 2017 results this morning, says the franchise business model it supports is more resilient than others...
28 March 2018
From: Breaking News
![Countrywide shares struggle as theory emerges on Platt departure](/img/default/eat.png)
If Countrywide thought its fortunes would immediately improve following the departure of chief executive Alison Platt, it has to think again...
25 January 2018
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: Is this the start of industry failure?](/img/default/eat.png)
In last week’s column, I asked 14 industry leaders to give their predictions for the year ahead. Well, it seems a handful of...
10 January 2018
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: 14 industry leaders give their 2018 predictions](/img/default/eat.png)
Well, I don’t know about you but after the holidays I've got an imprint just below my navel where my belt...
03 January 2018
From: Breaking News
![PropTech consolidation starts as two high-profile firms form partnership](/img/default/eat.png)
PropTech start up OneDome, which supplies online booking and mapping tools, has teamed up with live chat service provider Yomdel in...
13 December 2017
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: Differentiate or die - Airbnb’s messy ecosystem](/img/default/eat.png)
The rise of Airbnb has been majestic, going all the way from conception to becoming a common noun in less than...
08 November 2017
From: Breaking News
![Belvoir makes new bid to push merger with Property Franchise Group](/img/default/eat.png)
The latest volley in the war of words between Belvoir and The Property Franchise Group has been hurled - this time...
01 November 2017
From: Breaking News
![Belvoir reveals wish to merge with Property Franchise Group](/img/default/eat.png)
Belvoir has announced that it has made an approach to The Property Franchise Group regarding a possible merger. In a statement to...
19 October 2017
From: Breaking News
![PropTech Today: Mr Bruce’s message of hope](/img/default/eat.png)
When Kenneth Bruce, co-founder of Purplebricks, published an emotional post on social media this week, my first reaction was; what a...
20 September 2017
From: Breaking News
![Was this the week the agency industry changed for good?](/img/default/eat.png)
I’ve been in France for the past few days and depending on your viewpoint, I made a spectacularly good or singularly...
09 September 2017
From: Features
![PropTech Today: Why consolidation and collaboration are badly needed](/img/default/eat.png)
“When an industry is new, still finding its feet, finding its purpose, the tendency is for those few people within it...
30 August 2017
From: Breaking News
![Mergers of independent estate agencies: the market and the price](/img/default/eat.png)
Consolidation continues apace amongst traditional estate agents. The raft of pressures on agents is increasing and these pressures have two strong...
14 January 2017
From: Features
![Franchise group grows despite Brexit and stamp duty unsettling market](/img/default/eat.png)
Franchise network Belvoir says a combination of Brexit and stamp duty have unsettled the housing market - although despite this the...
06 September 2016
From: Breaking News
![Countrywide agency office shuts - a sign of 'brand rationalisation' to come?](/img/default/eat.png)
Countrywide has closed an office of one of its best-known London brands, Faron Sutaria, and is merging its activities with a nearby...
02 August 2016
From: Breaking News
![Property Natter – it’s all about the software](/img/default/eat.png)
Software. You might not give it much thought a lot of the time, but it’s an absolutely crucial part of how...
04 March 2016
From: Features
![Why I've said no to PLC approaches](/img/default/eat.png)
Do you remember Martha Lane-Fox? She was the poster girl for lastminute.com and an icon of the dot.com bubble that ended...
15 January 2016
From: Features
![Ellie Hall, Head of Acquisitions, LSL Property Services](/img/default/eat.png)
Who are you? Ellie Hall. What does it say on your business card? Head of Acquisitions. You're on the hunt for acquisitions, what makes a...