The conversation around referral fees in recent months has raised important questions for estate agents because it’s not abstract.

Conveyancers are seeing increased workload, struggling to recruit and facing a review by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers into their referral arrangements with the property industry following the Panorama investigation.

And with transaction volumes climbing and processes still bogged down – 185 days on average from offer to completion, with one-third of deals collapsing – agents and conveyancers alike feel trust has been lost.

If the first step is acknowledging where trust has been damaged, the next must be asking: how do we rebuild?

For agencies, the opportunity lies not in rejecting referral relationships, but in re-defining them around shared value, transparency, and client success.

Referral arrangements are often seen through the lens of legal professionals, but estate agents have as much at stake.

Your recommendation reflects your brand. If a client’s conveyancing experience is slow, stressful, or opaque, it reflects on you – even if the fault lies elsewhere.

In today’s digital marketplace, where online reviews can make or break reputations, service quality is inseparable from business growth.

Strategic

The best referral partnerships aren’t transactional; they are strategic. That means choosing legal partners who:

• Communicate clearly and proactively with clients and agents
• Invest in technology for faster updates and better transparency
• Take ownership of service outcomes, not just files moving through the system

When these elements are in place, referral partnerships become a real differentiator for agents – speeding up transactions, reducing fall-throughs, and strengthening client trust.

Competitive advantage

Too often, disclosure of referral fees is treated as a regulatory checkbox. Instead, forward-thinking agencies can position transparency as part of their value proposition. Imagine saying to a client: “We do work with preferred legal partners, and here’s why.

We’ve chosen them because they deliver excellent service and help your move run smoothly. Yes, they pay us a fee for introductions, but this doesn’t cost you more and doesn’t influence the quality of their service.”

Handled openly, such conversations don’t erode trust – they build it.

Raising standards

The CLC’s upcoming review shows reform is on the horizon, but progressive agencies don’t need to wait for regulation to dictate change.

By aligning with ethical conveyancers who prioritise service and embedding transparency at the heart of every referral, agents can set the benchmark and lead the industry forward.

At RG Law, our philosophy is simple: we don’t buy business with inflated fees – we build it on trust, quality, and accountability.

Trust

Estate agency has always been about more than transactions – it’s about reputation and relationships.

By choosing referral partners who reflect your values and by embracing transparency, agencies can turn a once-controversial practice into a hallmark of professionalism.

It’s time to reset, not retreat. Let’s use this moment to prove that when conveyancers and agents work in true partnership, clients win – and so does the industry.

Adam Bainbridge is Sales Manager at RG Law