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Estate agents offered chance to set up own hybrid business

Mr and Mrs Clarke has launched a new loan offering for agents who want to make the leap and become their own boss.

David Callaghan

estate agents

Estate agents hoping to set up their own business can now apply to be a franchisee under the Mr and Mrs Clarke umbrella.

Mr and Mrs Clarke, which was recently acquired by Belvoir Group, has launched a loan product to help new self-employed agents cover the set-up costs, and soften the blow of leaving employment.

The self-employed model is growing in popularity, but the overwhelming barrier for most agents is money. Agents right now would be walking away from a guaranteed income, a pipeline of commission, a company car and an office.

Too many things get in the way of an agent leaving the corporate world, and the perceived risks stop them in their tracks. Imposter syndrome, fear of failure, no experience in starting a business and more often than not a lack of finance, are all obstacles.

Estate agents

Mr and Mrs Clarke provide their franchisees with an in-house design and marketing studio, access to their website and property portals, admin and operational services and a CRM system. Franchisees take 75% of the commission they charge sales and lettings clients, and they have exclusivity in a territory.

Link to Franchising feature

Paul Clarke, co-founder of Mr and Mrs Clarke, (pictured) said: “We have spoken to dozens of great people who want to start their own agency with us, but they just don’t have the finances.

“We realised that we had to support these amazing estate agents and provide them with capital required to launch a business, and also ensure that their day-to-day costs are covered.

“This is an extremely exciting next step for Mr & Mrs Clarke and we can’t wait to see the business continue to grow and expand as a result of our new loan product,” he added.

To apply for the Mr and Mrs Clarke loan visit here

July 11, 2022

2 comments

  1. New agents need to cover the first eight months of business and living costs, so £50,000 to £80,000 depending on their situation. With then only a fractional cash flow inwards after that. So how big is the loan?

    Second, most profitable mature agencies work on a 28% gross profit margin, if an agent is ‘giving’ the franchise 25%, that leaves 3% for the agent and of course the repayments for any loan they take out. Maybe as cash is cheap, the time honoured start up model of re-mortgage your home or sell a rental property might be a better route to set up an agency, and you get to have your own name on those sold boards.

    • Hello Andrew.

      The Mr and Mrs Clarke Loan is up to £12.5k. It is available to people who want to take on a franchise and require some finance to launch and build their business. It’s different to taking an “£80,000” loan from a bank and selling the family silver to open a High Street office with lots of employees and a fleet of cars.

      The beauty of working with a brokerage like Mr and Mrs Clarke is that the start up costs are reduced and the ongoing risks are less than were an agent to set up their own agency and take on a lot of debt and a lot of risk.

      This growing sector of the estate agency industry has become popular because talented agents and entrepreneurs can launch and grow an agency without having to re-mortgage their home or take out an “£80,000” loan from the bank.

      Mr and Mrs Clarke provide franchisees with an estate agency infrastructure and operating systems, as well as an in-house marketing and design team. Franchisees also have access to training, PR, portals, website, advice, brand awareness campaigns and being part of a dynamic culture.

      Mr and Mrs Clarke franchisees take 75% of the commission they charge eg. for the sale of a £1m property at 1.25% they would take £9,375 – ambitious agents and hardworking, talented people will be able to see that the opportunity can be lucrative. Especially when the costs are relatively low, the support is all encompassing and there is now a loan facility in place to give them a “start”.

      In the US and Australia great estate agents are less concerned about having “their name above the door”, and prefer to run their own local operation with the support of a brokerage. The landscape is changing in the industry over here, and Mr and Mrs Clarke are delighted to be able to provide financial support to forward thinking, ambitious people who want to improve their lives and drive the industry forwards.

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