Rightmove’s annual fee hikes look set to outpace estate agent earnings for a third straight year, according to new analysis from Property DriveBuy. With UK house prices rising only modestly in 2025, agents – and by extension landlords relying on accurate valuations and sales pipelines – continue to see their margins chipped away while portal costs head in the opposite direction.
Rightmove fee growth outstripping UK agent earnings
Property DriveBuy compared two years of house price movements, the average commission earned per property sale, and the growth in Rightmove’s monthly charges. The contrast is stark.
In 2022, an average agent earned £3,773 per sale, yet paid £1,314 per month to Rightmove simply to advertise. Then 2023 arrived with a 1.7% drop in house prices, trimming roughly £63 off commission per property, while the portal still lifted its fees by 8.9% (£117 a month).
The picture barely improved in 2024. Even as house prices nudged up 1.3%, increasing commission by £49 per sale, Rightmove’s monthly charge jumped again – this time by 6.5% (£93).
Letting agents and sales negotiators I’ve spoken to describe the situation bluntly: “We’re paying champagne prices for lemonade service.” It’s not a formal quote, but a widely expressed sentiment in recent trade forums and commentary threads.
For buy-to-let landlords, who depend on agents to price and move stock efficiently, higher operational costs eventually feed into sales and lettings fees. As margins tighten, the temptation for agents to increase charges on landlords subtly – through admin fees, compliance add-ons, photography packages and premium listing pushes – is only growing.
Rent growth outlook and the effect on landlord pipelines
So far in 2025, average UK house prices are up 2.6%, now sitting at £271,531. That pushes typical commission per sale to £3,856, only £97 more than last year. A modest uptick – but hardly the kind of growth that supports escalating portal overheads.
ONS data has repeatedly shown how static transaction volumes are suppressing sales income for agencies. And when agents earn less, service levels and marketing budgets inevitably feel the strain.
The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has previously warned that rising intermediary costs make the sales process “less efficient and more expensive than it needs to be,” particularly when stock levels are already constrained by landlords exiting due to tax pressures and mortgage costs.
For landlords juggling remortgaging at higher rates, EPC uncertainty and shifting tenant demand, the last thing the sector needs is a sales ecosystem becoming progressively more expensive for the professionals who facilitate it.
Specialist finance for landlords and alternatives to the portal model
Property DriveBuy’s CEO, Steve Foreman, captured the frustration in unusually direct terms:
“We are now seeing a clear pattern emerge. Even in years where the housing market stabilises, the uplift in commission is minimal while portal fees continue to climb at a far faster pace. The result is shrinking margins for the very professionals who drive the market forward.”
His point matters. Whether you’re an estate agent or a professional landlord, margin compression is becoming a defining trend of the post-pandemic market. It’s visible in everything from Section 24’s lingering tax drag to the rising cost of landlord insurance – which jumped 11% year-on-year according to UK Finance – and increasingly complex borrowing criteria for portfolio investors.
Rightmove’s model has long benefited from its near-monopoly status, but the market may be shifting. Cheaper alternatives and agent-first platforms are gaining traction, particularly where they can reduce operating costs for firms already stretched by compliance and staffing pressures.
One Midlands agent told Residential Landlord earlier this year that their annual portal spend “now exceeds our office rent,” a comment echoed by several others in regional markets with weaker sales turnover.
For landlords, this has a downstream effect: when agents are forced to carry higher structural costs, fewer resources go into marketing rental stock, client communication, and sales progression – all of which matter enormously when navigating voids, refinancing timelines and yield planning.
If there’s a theme running through the 2020s housing market, it’s this: costs are rising everywhere except in the places that generate real value. Landlords, agents and even tenants are ultimately affected by dominant platforms increasing fees without clear evidence of proportional benefit.
The real question now is whether the industry will continue tolerating this imbalance, or if competitive pressure – finally – forces meaningful reform. Either way, landlords should keep a close eye on how these upstream costs reshape agency behaviour throughout 2025.
