Estate Agent

Key skills/talents

To succeed in the fast-paced world of property, an estate agent needs a unique blend of skills:

• Strong Communication: The ability to connect with people, understand their needs, and convey information clearly is essential.

• Negotiation: Haggling is a big part of the job. Agents need to be skilled negotiators to achieve the best possible deal for their clients.

• Market Knowledge: A deep understanding of local property trends, prices, and competition is crucial for effective marketing and valuation.

• Business Acumen: Estate agents are essentially running their own small business, so business savvy is a must.

• Resilience: The property market can be unpredictable, so agents need to be able to handle setbacks and pressure.

• People Skills: Building strong relationships with clients, sellers, buyers, and other professionals is key to success.

• Organisation: Juggling multiple properties, clients, and deadlines requires excellent organisational skills.

• Salesmanship: Persuading people to buy or sell a property is a core part of the role, so strong sales skills are invaluable.

• Legal acumen: Although this is the responsibility with property solicitors/conveyors, it’s important that estate agents understand and can navigate the legal process associated with property.

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As an estate agent in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, you'll need to:

• Collect information about a property and arrange for photographs to be taken

• Visit and talk to sellers about their property and its special features

• Estimate the value of a property

• Market and promote properties for sale

• Arrange and carry out property viewings for prospective buyers

• Represent the sellers in negotiation with prospective buyers

• Monitor sales as they proceed and liaise with all interested parties including mortgage brokers, solicitors, surveyors and other estate agents

• Recommend properties to clients that meet their needs and budget

• Make sure that the price agreed is acceptable to both buyer and seller

• Keep up to date with trends, legislation and regulation in the relevant property market

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If you work in the lettings area of estate agency, you'll need to:

• Vet prospective tenants by collecting references and performing credit checks

• Ensure properties meet legal and health and safety requirements, e.g. gas safety certificates

• Draw up tenancy agreement contracts

• Collect or organise rent payments

• Act as a property manager and resolve any issues that arise with properties

• Essentially, a successful estate agent is a combination of sales person, negotiator, market analyst, and relationship builder.

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​Qualifications required

While there's no legal requirement for specific qualifications to become an estate agent, possessing relevant credentials can significantly enhance your career prospects, and the transferable skills gained from degree level study will be an advantage. Having subject knowledge from a degree, foundation degree or HND in the following subject areas would be especially relevant and desirable:

• Business-related studies

• Civil and structural engineering

• Estate management

• Property development/management

• Surveying

• Urban and land studies

• Law

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Many enter the field through on-the-job training or apprenticeships, but formal qualifications like the Level 3 (SCQF Level 6) Certificate in Property Agency are increasingly valued and can progress you up the ladder a lot quicker.

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Additionally, degree-level education in business, property management, or related fields can provide a solid foundation. Ultimately, a combination of qualifications, practical experience, and strong interpersonal skills is essential for success in the estate agency industry.

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Details of the qualifications can be found here: https://www.propertymark.co.uk/careers-learning/qualifications/certificate-in-property-agency.html

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The UCAS link for degrees is here: https://www.ucas.com/explore/search/all?query=property%20management

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Details regarding apprenticeships in estate agency can be found here: https://findapprenticeshiptraining.apprenticeships.education.gov.uk/courses/310

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Rules and regs

Estate agents in the UK operate within a robust regulatory framework. They must adhere to the Estate Agents Act 1979, which outlines their responsibilities to clients: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1979/38

 

Additionally, the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 safeguards consumers from misleading practices: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2008/1277/contents

 

A crucial requirement is membership in an approved ‘redress’ scheme, such as The Property Ombudsman: https://www.tpos.co.uk,  or the Property Redress Scheme: https://www.theprs.co.uk , to provide a mechanism for dispute resolution. 

 

Other key legislation includes the Data Protection Act (which we link a lot), to ensure the secure handling of client information: https://www.gov.uk/data-protection. Plus, the Consumer Rights Act, which outlines consumer protections: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/contents

 

Oh and details of HMRC rules relating to anti-money laundering (yep, it’s real a thing in this industry), can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/registration-guide-for-estate-agency-businesses 

 

Compliance with these laws and regulations is essential to maintain professional standards and protect the interests of both agents and clients.

 

Estate agents also require specific insurance coverage to protect their business and if you work for a firm, they will provide this, although it’s worth checking/asking what insurance they have and how it covers you. 

 

Professional indemnity insurance is crucial to safeguard against claims arising from negligent advice or services. Public liability insurance covers potential damages to property or people, essential for agents who meet clients or have office premises. Employers' liability insurance is mandatory for those with employees. Additionally, buildings and contents insurance may be necessary for property owners or renters. To comply with anti-money laundering regulations, estate agents must also register with HMRC.

 

Here are a couple of insurance companies that offer cover specific to estate agents:

https://www.directlineforbusiness.co.uk/small-business-insurance/estate-and-letting-agents

https://www.hiscox.co.uk/business-insurance/estate-and-letting-agents

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Remuneration framework

Starting salaries for estate agents are in the region of £18,000 to £25,000 on-target earnings (OTE) for trainee posts.

 

The national average salary for an estate agent is £24,685 per year.

 

With experience, salaries can rise from £30,000 to £60,000, plus commission.

At the higher end of the scale, in certain management positions, and particularly if you're in a high-end London agency, you could earn up to £100,000.

 

Salaries are typically made up of a basic salary plus commission, which is usually based on a percentage of your own, or your branch's sales. Commission rates vary but tend to range between 0.75% to 3% of the fee income. Determining factors are location, the size of the firm, your base salary and the economic climate. You may be employed on a guaranteed initial commission at first, for a limited period to give you a chance to gain experience and start securing deals. Some estate agencies offer branch commission, meaning all workers get a proportional share of the sales for the branch.

 

You're likely to receive employee benefits as an estate agent. These differ depending on the role and organisation but can include perks such as a company car, fuel allowance, bonus schemes, pension, industry qualifications and an employee discount on your home purchases. You may also receive referral incentives, when you successfully engage a buyer with associate professionals, such as surveyors and conveyancers.

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How to get started

To embark on a career in an estate agency, practical experience through apprenticeships or entry-level roles is invaluable. While not mandatory, obtaining qualifications like the ones listed above will always help, provided you are interested enough in the subject matter to pursue them. And we say that because it really isn’t essential, for residential roles at least. Commercial roles come with more risk - and reward - so qualifications like we’ve listed would be regarded highly.

 

Most people (without any property experience) simply apply for a junior/admin role at a local estate agent and work their way up. If you’re good and you work hard/are committed, progression can be relatively quick (see below).

 

Work experience (FOC or minimum wage) is also a good route to try, to give you a feel for the role and what it entails… You could volunteer for weekend support (weekends are always a tricky thing for estate agents, because it’s when we/punters prefer to view properties, albeit when they would like to have days off. If you can provide free or cheap cover for this, you’ll likely be received with open arms.

 

Once you’ve got your foot in the door, and depending on the size/scale of the firm, you could always undertake a qualification alongside. Some firms will even fund/pay for this, although may well tie you into a 2-year contract upon completion.

 

Training takes place on the job and in-house and can include areas such as:

• Conveyancing practice and procedure

• Dealing with difficult people

• Effective estate agency

• Effective leadership

• Essential law for residential estate agents

• Customer service/Relationship skills

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Job site links

Estate agency roles can be found on various platforms. Popular job boards like Reed and Indeed (and of course, Linked In) often advertise positions, particularly for independent agencies. Alternatively, well-known high street chains such as Foxtons and Knight Frank frequently have vacancies listed on their corporate websites..

https://www.foxtons.co.uk/foxtons/careers 

https://jobs.knightfrank.com

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Associations or official bodies to register with

Propertymark is the leading authority for property professionals. Whether you're starting out or a seasoned expert, our membership offers the tools and knowledge to excel in the industry, navigate regulatory changes, and grow your business: https://www.propertymark.co.uk 

 

The Chartered Institute of Housing is the leading professional body for housing professionals. We champion the housing sector, setting standards and advocating for improved housing conditions. Our focus is on advancing the housing profession and serving the interests of our members and the public: https://www.cih.org

The National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team protects consumers and businesses by enforcing the Estate Agents Act (1979) and the Tenant Fees Act 2019: https://www.nationaltradingstandards.uk/work-areas/estate-agency-team

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Progression pathway​

As we’ve already said, progression in this field can be quick and you can move up the ranks and earn more money at a good rate.

 

You may start as a trainee or assistant sales or lettings negotiator and progress to the position of senior sales or lettings negotiator. In this role, you would build on your experience of selling and letting different types of properties, as well as potentially performing valuations.

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A common progression route involves moving into the role of a senior sales negotiator, which can happen fairly quickly, with as little as one year's experience in a trainee post. With around three to five years of experience, you could progress further into the role of branch manager. As branch manager you would manage staff in the branch, carry out senior-level sales or lettings negotiations and mentor junior sales negotiators.

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After branch manager, there can be a bottleneck in promotion opportunities. However, with substantial experience, you could progress to the position of area manager, in which you would manage several branches. Mobility can be important for career development as it may be necessary to move branches or companies to achieve promotion to a senior level. You could also consider self-employment, becoming a partner or sole principal of your own firm, which many people do even without/before progressing to a branch manager elsewhere. Katie certainly took the leap when she felt ready to, and not according to any clear/obvious progression route.

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Additional Information/links

https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/job-profiles/estate-agent

 

https://uk.indeed.com/career-advice/pay-salary/how-much-does-an-estate-agent-earn