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Has online and hybrid estate agents’ market share grab run out of steam?

Figures from research firm TwentyCI reveals online and hybrid's share of the property markets has slipped by 0.4% to 7.2%.

Nigel Lewis

The property market share of online and hybrid estate agents reduced from 7.6% to 7.2%, latest research by consultancy TwentyCI has revealed.

It says that the demise of eMoov and recent Purplebricks results suggest that demand for hybrids and online agents may have plateaued as they struggle to win more customers and build further brand awareness.

“Paradoxically, online agents are doing better in the north where properties are generally cheaper compared to the south. Based on their fixed-fee structures, one might have reasonably expected this to have been the other way round,” says Colin Bradshaw, Chief Customers Officer at TwencyCI (pictured, below).

Northern growth

His company’s data shows that growth in online/hybrid market share is highest in Scotland (+49.8%), the North East (+38.3%) and in Northern Ireland (+34.09%).

But they are struggling down south – market share growth in London decreased by 16% and in the South East by 19%.

Growth is highest in the sub-£200,000 housing market at 4% and weakest in the £1m plus prime property band.

TwentyCi’s Homemover Report covering the final three months of 2018 also reveals that the overall number of instructions  increased by 4%.

It says there was also a 1.2% decline in the number of homes exchanging and that the fall-through rate within the industry remains high at 20%. Wales has the highest at 22.9% while the lowest is in Northern Ireland at 9.1%.

“The low volume of properties coming to market has the potential to thwart demand,” says Bradshaw. “Q1 2019 and the outcome of the Brexit process will determine the outcome for the next 12 months.”

January 28, 2019

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