How much does an estate agent earn?
When choosing your next career move, there are many factors that you are likely to take into consideration before taking the plunge. Although location, brand and benefits are all considered important in the decision-making process, salary often ranks highly as the ultimate deal-breaker. It’s a question that everyone wants the answer to, but is too scared to ask- “Exactly how much can I earn?”
Although considered a relatively controversial topic when applying for a job, having a clear understanding and realistic expectations of the salary you are likely to be offered is important when deciding whether a job is the right fit for you.
With our extensive experience of recruiting within the property sector, we can help you better understand what kind of salary you can expect if you’re considering becoming an estate agent.
If the numbers we are talking about here sound appealing to you – be sure to check out our jobs page and get in touch with us today.
Entry level Estate Agent salaries in the UK
If you think that an estate agency role could be for you, then it’s important to look into what qualifications and experience you might need, which we summarise in our guide: Is a career in estate agency for you?
When you start as an estate agent in a commission-based role, you’ll typically receive a guaranteed salary for your first three months to cover you until you start to make sales and in turn, earn some commission. In those first three months, you can expect to earn between £25,000 and £30,000.
Once those three months are up, your experience will have grown and you will revert to a smaller base salary of around £18,000 to £22,000, with an understanding that the commission you earn will boost what you take home each month.
If you are a successful seller, you can expect to earn between £25,000 and £35,000 in your first year, although many estate agent starters have earned a whole lot more than that – it all depends on how much commission you earn.
Sound good? Find out here how to become an estate agent.
How commission works
When looking to move into estate agency, you might have an unrealistic idea of how much commission you’ll make on every deal you close. Of course, different agencies adopt different commission schemes, but generally the commission you’ll take home is based on a percentage of the price of the property you sell, and the percentage of that sale that your office makes.
For example, if a property is sold for £500,000, and your office collects 1% of the sale, then the company you work for will make £5,000. Of that fee, you might then be entitled to 10% personal commission, meaning you would earn £500 in commission.
Whereas sales commission is paid on completion of the sale of the property, the process is different when it comes to lettings. With a rented property, rather than a one-off payment, approximately 10% (plus VAT) of the monthly rent is collected by the agency, and you will receive a percentage based on the commission rate set by your office. The commission you will earn in lettings will be lower than that earned in sales, but of course you would be expected to let more properties, resulting in a similar level of commission regardless of which area of the business you are working in.
If you want to know more about commission, we’ve written more about it in our blog post: All about estate agency commission.
Experienced estate agent jobs and career progression
According to figures from unitedpropertyconnect.com, UK residential estate agents make an average salary of £41,392, that’s much higher than the UK average salary.
With years of experience under their belts, successful and experienced agents can earn anything between £50,000- £100,000. As with most industries, hard work will reap rewards, and if you were to eventually progress into a position such as a branch manager or an area manager, your commission and salary will grow with your experience.
If you are looking for a new role, then our interview advice guide will help you prepare for getting that new job.
Bonuses
Like many other sales roles, you’re not only working to make commission on each transaction; you’ll also be expected to meet monthly, quarterly or yearly personal and company targets. These are put in place so that your employer can monitor your activity and areas of prowess, but also so that you’re able to take more money home in your pay packet.
When you first start, targets can seem daunting. If your annual target is to earn your company £200,000 worth of fees, it will require you to sell roughly £20 million worth of property in a year (as the £200,000 will be 1% of everything you sell. That will also mean that you’ll make a minimum of £20,000 a year in commission alone).
If you hit your target at some point during the year, you may receive an enhanced commission of, say, 15% or 20%. Reaching this landmark may also mean you qualify for an annual bonus that will be paid at the end of the calendar or financial year.
