Estate agents face mounting pressure to respond to client communications within 24 hours across nearly all stages of the property sales process, according to new research from Street Group.
A survey of 1,830 current and recent home sellers found that rapid response times have become a key factor in agent selection, with clients applying consumer expectations from digital services to the property market.
Communication expectations
The research revealed that 85% of sellers expect estate agents to respond to initial enquiries about selling their home within 24 hours. One in five respondents consider anything longer than four hours too slow, whilst only 4% view waiting more than two working days as acceptable.
The 24-hour expectation extends throughout the sales journey, including viewing feedback, updates on buyer interest, offer notifications, and responses to questions after a sale has been agreed.
Heather Staff, Co-Founder of Street Group, said: “Sellers increasingly expect estate agents to operate on a same-day timescale. Across almost every stage of the sales journey, the expectation is that communication happens within 24 hours. In many cases, sellers want updates within just a few hours.”
Industry implications
The findings suggest sellers are comparing agents based on response speed, both during the selection process and when working with multiple agents simultaneously. This trend mirrors broader changes affecting property professionals and agencies adapting to digital-era client expectations.
Staff noted that these expectations have been shaped by wider digital experiences in everyday life, with clients applying standards from instant messaging and e-commerce platforms to property transactions.
The pressure on response times comes as the industry faces other operational challenges, including recent regulatory changes affecting lettings and evolving technology and marketing practices.
Market context
The research indicates a shift in how agents are evaluated by clients, with communication speed becoming a competitive differentiator alongside traditional metrics such as fees and local market knowledge.
The data reflects broader changes in service expectations across the property sector, as clients increasingly demand the same immediacy they experience with other digital services.
