Have the storm clouds passed?

Whats really happening in the Estate Agent job market in 2024?

✅ Candidate enquires are up by 35% YOY

✅ Companies are hiring

The year started with lots of companies wanting to hire, listing their job vacancies with enthusiasm, lots of frenzied activity and then..it went a little slow - so lets explore why.

Companies want to hire. They spent the last 6 months of 2023 with no hiring budget, staff struggled with understaffing, many estate agency staff did not hit close to their forecast 2023 OTE this bringing lots of jobseekers to the market.

The industry has green shoots everywhere - interest rates may not be coming down as quickly as people want, but they are not going up. There are more FS enquiries coming in showing buyer confidence and many agencies are having record breaking months of offers agreed. Inflation is low, house prices are increasing and there is positivity throughout the market.

The problem is, the results from the green shoots have not been banked yet and many companies are still finalising the 2024 budgets.

Many companies are still trading on cash reserves - so whilst there is a desire to hire, there is not a desire to spend until either budgets are locked down and pipelines are converting. So decision making is a little slow, its frustrating, but it will come though. The jobs are there!

I mentioned storms....

Whilst the Estate Agency gains momentum and starts showing growth and stability, recruitment will remain steady for a little while. However, I forecast the recruitment sector, which is just a small step behind Agency, will be exceptionally busy as the years moves forward and there are signs this March will be very busy as the spring market really goes up a gear. So for now, yes, the storms have passed.

The year ahead...

I believe the 2024 market will be buoyant in recruitment and we will see companies investing in areas of new growth for their business. With lots of acquisitions and mergers set to complete this always sees people movement as people adapt to new working practices and company cultures.

However as the year draws to a close, its expected there may be some disruption around General Elections etc, so the message is clear - make hay whilst the sun shines!

In the meantime, those that are actively hiring need a good recruiter who will sift through the talent to ensure you have the best on and off market talent presented to you is essential to ensure you have the best your budget can secure. This is where the Team at Rayner Personnel and myself can really help you.

Why not reach out to us today? For help recruiting call Sally on 07760 787026 or DM me