Thousands of High Street estate agents in the UK are struggling financially, says new study

Hundreds of estate agents have gone out of business in the UK in the last year and 7,000 are showing signs of financial distress as they face fewer sales and online competition, a new study has found. Overall some 27% of traditional High Street estate agents are struggling to survive and one of the main reasons is a long-term decline in property sales although the also face competition from more cost-effective online businesses. Even larger estate agents are not immune, according to the report from accountants Moore Stephens. It points out that London estate agent Foxtons reported a 15% drop to £24.5 million in revenue in the first quarter of 2018 from the same period last year while shares in the UK’s largest estate agent Countrywide fell 25% in one day in late June, after it issued its second profit warning of the year.