The Roadshow kicked off in Glasgow, followed by Manchester, Bristol, and finishing in Cambridge. And of course, we assembled some of the experts from Street.co.uk and Spectre to attend - giving our thoughts on what the future of estate agency looks like.

During each event, there was a collection of talks that showed attendees how to best future-proof their business, with detailed insights from Peter Knight on his ‘People, Outsource, Automate’ theory.

There were also engaging speaker sessions all covering different topics, with notable talks from On The Market who covered their recent acquisition by Co Star. Ian Preston of Preston Baker also took to the floor to discuss how their implementation of AI has cut back on costs and left them as profitable as ever. And, we heard from MoneyPenny about the impact of outsourcing workloads. 

Then, it was time for Street Group to take to the stage with our talk: ‘5 Predictions for Estate Agency for the Next 5 Years’, which analysed some of the key trends we’ve noticed across the estate industry and our predictions for the future. 

At Street.co.uk and Spectre, we have to consistently place massive bets on what will happen in the industry to ensure we always keep both ourselves, and our clients, ahead of the curve. That means we’re always speaking to agents and their customers, navigating the legislative landscape, and keeping a close eye on technological advancements. 

If you weren’t able to attend one of the EA Masters Roadshows, you can watch our vlog from Week 1.

In this year’s Roadshow, we revealed that our big bets are:

1. Everything is going mobile for the consumer
2. AI will make the top 20% of agents, 60% more productive
3. E-money and open banking will revolutionise the lettings industry
4. The compliance burden will increase
5. Tech efficiencies and outsourcing will mean 50% fewer people per branch

Catch up on our ‘big bets’ for the next 5 years with our summary below…

5 Predictions for Estate Agency for the Next 5 Years: Key Takeaways

1. Everything is going mobile for the consumer

Mobile technology has transformed various aspects of our lives, yet the property industry is still lagging in mobile innovation, despite consumer demand. Agents are often too quick to underestimate clients' tech appetite, mistakenly assuming older demographics aren't tech-savvy. However, platforms like TikTok show increasing engagement across all ages, including significant growth among users over 55.

To remain competitive, independent agents should leverage mobile solutions like Street.co.uk's Agent and Consumer Apps, offering a modern, transparent digital experience for property transactions. By providing apps for your customers you can offer automation opportunities that don’t just benefit you, but your clients too.

2. AI will make the top 20% of agents, 60% more productive

AI adoption is growing at a rapid pace and, at this current speed, it’s likely it could be just as transformative as the internet. In Street.co.uk’s system, a Language Learning Model (LLM) already writes 80% of property descriptions and composes emails from a single prompt. Within years, LLMs are expected to handle the majority of customer communication, including 24-hour web chat. 

AI technology is rapidly advancing. AI predictive models will likely soon forecast property sale likelihood and lead conversion probability. Computer vision is starting to be used to analyse property photos, with our own platform even having a prototype that can generate full property descriptions from images alone.

3. E-money and open banking will revolutionise the lettings industry

Lettings management presents the highest potential for automation in estate agency. The current process of handling incoming and outgoing payments via separate client accounts is fundamentally flawed - it's time-consuming, error-prone, poses security risks, and offers a poor experience for landlords who often wait 2-3 days for funds to clear. 

Client accounting could revolutionise agency operations through open banking and e-money institutions. Open banking allows banking data to be accessed via APIs, powering innovative fintech products. E-money institutions can provide virtual accounts, potentially eliminating the need for traditional client accounts. 

However, current legislation doesn't classify e-money institutions under the same protection… but once regulations catch up, this technology could enable automatic payment requests, instant reconciliation, and rapid payouts. We predict that such automated systems will become standard in estate agency within 3-5 years, replacing current archaic processes.

4. The compliance burden will increase

The next General Election is just around the corner, with Labour looking likely to take power. The Renters (Reform) Bill didn't pass before Parliament's dissolution, creating uncertainty in the property sector. Above all, Labour's position on the bill is unclear, but they're expected to propose a 'Renters' Charter' with significant sector reforms, including ending Section 21 'no-fault' evictions and increasing tenants' rights and landlords' responsibilities. 

Tighter regulation has been anticipated since 2019, with new recommendations submitted in April. The Conservative Government delayed discussions pending passage of the Freehold and Renters' Reform Bills. With both bills now stalled, the future expectations for estate agents are uncertain, though tighter regulation is inevitable. Our prediction is that technology will need to handle much of this increased workload to prevent further squeezing of agency margins, as rising wages make it unsustainable to employ more staff for manual processes.

5. Tech efficiencies and outsourcing will mean 50% fewer people per branch

"AI isn't going to replace people, it will make people more productive" is a common refrain, but while possibly accurate on a societal level, it may not hold true for individual businesses. 

Jobs will be automated and redundancies will occur, with AI being a contributing factor.

The average agent still performs a significant amount of 'busywork' - tasks completed by humans that don't add value to clients. Further automation is possible by outsourcing call answering to services like Moneypenny, which can utilise Street.co.uk's online booking engine.

While a lot of traits associated with estate agency should remain human-led, particularly when dealing with high-value assets, we predict the industry will likely see increased use of technology to streamline non-essential human interactions over the next five years.

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The Roadshow has been an incredible experience and it has been so great to be a part of it, once again. We’ve loved travelling across the country chatting to some of the best agents in the UK, alongside some of our favourite suppliers. 

We want to say a huge thank you to EA Masters for welcoming us and putting on such an amazing series of events.

Until next year!