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The bosses of estate agency names such as Savills and Knight Frank may be getting uneasy after their rival Fine & Country claimed to have grown its market share by 20% over the past 12 months within the £750,000+ market.
Started up 21 years ago by Malcolm Lindley and then bought by The Guild parent company nurtur, Fine & Country now operates 300 branches across the UK.
Its global CEO Simon Leadbetter (pictured) says the agency has also made progress in the £500,000+ homes market during the same period, moving from nine to fifth position by listings.
“A 20% growth in market share in any market segment is significant, especially when listings are not easy to come by, and other agencies have seen a decline in instructions,” says Leadbetter.
He claims the two leading estate agency brands within the prime sector of the market have seen their share of listings fall by 10% and 24%, respectively, during the same period.
Market share
“Of the top ten estate agencies listing properties priced at £1 million and above, Fine & Country is the only brand that has seen market share growth last year,” he adds.
Also, Fine & Country says it saw 50% listings growth in the £2 million+ housing as it took market share all its rivals in this market.
Leadbetter reckons the agency’s recent market share gains are down to just two factors – customer referrals and that independent agents are more hungry than directly-employed staff at big firms.
“Entrepreneurially-minded agency professionals make up our network, working together under one banner, supporting each other while being supported by an established premium estate agency brand,” he says.
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