25 YEARS IN PROPERTY RECRUITMENT – ALLISON DALRYMPLE

At just 24 years old, having already spent six years working in estate agency, I joined Property Personnel as a recruiter focusing on the lettings and property management division.

At the time, sales recruitment was very much the core focus of the business. Lettings sat alongside it and accounted for around a third of PP’s income. With my background firmly rooted in estate agency and lettings, it felt like a natural fit and I very quickly fell in love with recruitment.

In my first role as an estate agent, I was fortunate to have an exceptional mentor who taught me the true value of relationships and service levels. I was taught never to be afraid of the phone, what’s the worst that can happen? They hang up! Smile when you speak, and people will smile back. Those lessons stayed with me.

Applying that mindset to recruitment, in a sector I genuinely understood, allowed me to build some incredible long-term relationships with both clients and candidates, many of whom I still work with today.

Over time, my lettings desk grew, and eventually my team overtook our sales counterparts. As our clients’ businesses evolved, so did their recruitment needs. We expanded the roles we recruited for as the sector itself became more professional, more regulated, and more specialised.

Interestingly, we placed more trainees than experienced staff during that period. Clients wanted people they could mould to their own way of working. Looking back now, that is one of the most rewarding parts of my career. I still feel a huge sense of pride and, honestly, a warm heart, when I see candidates I placed at entry level now running their own businesses or holding CEO and MD positions.

When a former candidate comes back to you years later, not looking for a job, but asking for help as a client, it really cements why you do this job, and why you push through the blood, sweat and tears that come with it.

Now, 25 years on, after three promotions and as a Director, I support all disciplines across the business.

Alongside that, I have two amazing children, a very supportive better half, and a slightly crazy Staffordshire Bull Terrier. They are all very used to me stopping them mid-conversation to answer a call, or announcing that dinner is delayed because I’ve just had to organise an interview that couldn’t wait.

I’ve just about mastered the art of leaving my work mobile with a colleague while on holiday, although I still haven’t managed to delete my emails from my personal phone. Maybe in the next 25 years!

What I’ve Seen Change and What Really Matters

When I started my career in property recruitment 25 years ago, the industry and the world around it looked very different.

Back then, Friends and ER were essential Thursday night viewing, the ultimate company car was a VW Golf Mk4 or BMW 3 series, and petrol cost around 75p a litre. Mobile phones were bulky, emails weren’t guaranteed to be read, and social media simply didn’t exist. If you missed an episode of your favourite programme, you simply missed it. Shopping meant heading to the high street and hoping what you wanted was in stock.

Fast forward to today and we stream television on demand, without adverts and without having to wait a week for the next episode. We can swipe on Amazon and have almost anything delivered at the drop of a hat, electric and hybrid cars dominate the roads, petrol prices regularly sit around £1.50 a litre, and expectations around speed and convenience have fundamentally changed, including how we recruit and build property teams.

When I first started recruiting negotiators, it was entirely normal to offer an entry-level basic salary of around £10,000 plus 10% commission. Candidates were expected to work long hours, weekends were a given, and commission was where you earned your living.

Fast forward to now and entry level basics typically sit between £20,000 and £25,000. This shift hasn’t happened by chance, it’s been driven by increases in the National Minimum and Living Wage, higher employment costs, and a much more competitive hiring market.

Businesses can no longer rely on commission alone to attract or retain good people, and candidates rightly expect a level of financial stability alongside performance-based reward.

Early in my career, most negotiators were true all-rounders. One person would handle sales, lettings, viewings, progression and often property management too. Career paths were informal and progression was largely based on time served or turnover produced.

Today, roles are far more specialised and structured, sales and lettings are clearly separated with dedicated property managers and compliance specialists. Head office roles in operations, marketing, finance and data are common and career progression is defined rather than assumed.

Property businesses now operate far more like professional services firms and recruitment has had to adapt accordingly.

Over the last 25 years, I’ve recruited through:

• The dot-com crash
• The Global Financial Crisis
• Brexit uncertainty
• COVID-19 lockdowns
• The post-lockdown property boom
• Rising interest rates and inflation

Each time, I’ve heard the same concerns: “This time it’s different.” And each time, the industry has adapted, recalibrated and recovered.

Having lived through multiple cycles gives you perspective. Property is cyclical but resilience, flexibility and good people consistently see businesses through.

One of the biggest changes I’ve seen is cultural.

When I first started preparing candidates for interviews, it was completely standard to advise them to cover tattoos, remove piercings, and dress very formally. Estate agents were renowned for the shiny suit and tie, you could spot one from a mile away.

Today, that advice would be inappropriate. The Age Discrimination Act and wider equality legislation, alongside a broader focus on diversity and inclusion, have fundamentally changed recruitment conversations.

Dress codes are far more relaxed, individuality is accepted, and in many cases encouraged. The focus has shifted to making clients feel comfortable, represented and able to trust the person sitting in front of them, not sold to.

Twenty-five years ago, benefits were minimal. A company car, commission and maybe a mobile phone were considered generous. Now, candidates talk to me about working hours and weekend rotas, flexibility and work-life balance. In addition, wellbeing and mental health support, along with leadership style and company culture, rank among their top priorities.

People no longer choose roles purely on salary. They choose employers whose values align with their own and that has fundamentally changed how agencies need to position themselves.

Employment law has evolved significantly, including:

• National Minimum and Living Wage legislation
• Auto-enrolment pensions
• Family-friendly rights
• The Age Discrimination Act
• Increased scrutiny around employment status
• Most recently, the Employment Rights Act 2025

These changes have increased costs and complexity for employers, and I see this influencing hiring decisions daily, particularly around junior recruitment.

Property law has also changed beyond recognition, with legislation including:

• Tenant Fees Act
• Right to Rent
• EPC requirements
• Licensing schemes
• The Renters’ Rights Bill
• Proposed ROPA licensing

As a recruiter, this has driven a clear shift: experienced, compliant professionals are more in demand than ever, while others are leaving the sector or moving into self-employed models.

What hasn’t changed?

Despite everything that has changed, such as salaries, legislation, culture, and technology, the one thing that has remained constant throughout my 25 years in property recruitment is that good people make the biggest difference!

The agencies that succeed through every cycle are those that invest in people early, remain open-minded about background and experience, adapt to change rather than resist it and put culture, development and retention first.

The industry will continue to evolve, but for those willing to evolve with it, opportunity always follows.