Estate agents disappearing from High Street… (I wonder why?) | Property Counsellors

Estate agents disappearing from High Street… (I wonder why?) | Property Counsellors

The latest figures from Ordnance Survey, the UK’s mapping agency, reveal the effect of the recession on the high street, with the presence of estate agents, building societies and auction houses being most significantly reduced.

Data from Ordnance Survey, which compares the amount of retail addresses across Great Britain today with the number in October 2008 (just after the collapse of Lehman Brothers), shows that estate agencies are down by an average of 9.2 per cent.

Their figures tally with those of the NAEA, whose membership, according to a past president, has decreased by 30 per cent in the last four years.

Ordnance Survey figures show that the North West and Wales were hit hardest, with numbers of estate agency offices falling far more than the national average at 15.4 per cent. The South East (down by 14.8 per cent) and West Midlands (down by 11 per cent) also suffered significant falls.

Could it be that there were simply too many agency branches on the high street? Many towns, including the Editor’s local mini-metropolis, used to have a whole street dedicated to estate agencies, but now several have gone. While many agencies have simply closed the doors on branches – or even on the whole company, some are trying to sell, which can’t be very easy right now. Businessesforsale.com has 68 agencies for sale across the country, including letting agencies and franchise resales.