Foxtons has quietly closed another branch, once again making no mention of the closure within its official communications to investors or the industry.
The West Hampstead office, located in a prominent position on West End Land, a stone’s throw from the tube and train stations, was opened in 2014, but the company was never well received by the local community, and has now finally decided to shut the office.
When Foxtons submitted plans for a new “cafe-style” outlet on the site of a former post office nine years ago, insisting that it will add something new to the neighbourhood, a prominent group of high street campaigners emerged calling on Camden Council to reject the application.
The group were not just opposed to what at the time was the 30th estate agency to open in the affluent north west London neighbourhood, but also Foxtons itself, insisting that the corporate firm was not a good fit for an area that traditionally celebrated independent businesses (that has since changed).
Estate agent David Matthews, who at the time sat on the committee of the West Hampstead Business Association, asked the local MP what he would do about the influx of estate agents who were “decreasing local footfall and artificially inflating prices”.
Matthews, head of Dutch and Dutch, owned by his family since the 1940s, described Foxtons as “the wrong company for the area”.
He added at the time: “West Hampstead has a very good selection of estate agents, some independent, some family owned, and they work together. But Foxtons, unfortunately, bucks that trend. We need retail, we want footfall and with 29 estate agents already at the last count, who needs a 30th?”
His complaint was echoed by Reverend Andrew Cain at the time.
“Does West Hampstead really need another estate agent? No, not really,” he said. “But with rent prices the way they are on West End Lane I suspect that Foxtons can pay where others can’t.”
Several local estate agents have closed in recent years, as a high number of agencies compete for limited business, and Foxtons is now the latest agency to call it a day when it comes to having a high street presence in West Hampstead.
Prospective buyers, sellers, landlords and tenants in and around West Hampstead seeking an in-person service with Foxtons are now being asked to visit the company’s Hampstead branch.
Foxtons’ total office network count has now dropped to 56 following the closure of the West Hampstead branch, and comes just weeks after EYE revealed that the agency had closed its Sutton branch. Is a new trend emerging? Are there plans for anymore office closures? Foxtons was approached for comment earlier this week.
While we have not yet received an official statement* from Foxtons regarding its latest branch closure, a spokesperson for the company did recently tell EYE that the business is currently in the process of reviewing the “size and shape” of its network “to ensure it meets the needs of today’s customers”.
Data released by TwentyEA last week revealed almost 5,000 high street agency branches were closed last year.
A total of 2,893 estate agent sales offices closed in 2023 with an additional 1,906 lettings branches ceasing to operate.
The findings, part of TwentyCi’s latest Property and HomeMover Report, shows that many of the closures were offset by new branch openings throughout the year but by the end of 2023, there were still 1,154 fewer sales branches and 659 fewer lettings branches.
In Q4 2023, there were 15,401 active sales branches in the UK and 14,544 active lettings branches.
* Additional reporting at 12.30pm: This story has been amended since first publication after Foxtons issued this statement a short while ago:
“After many years of working closely together, the Foxtons West Hampstead team have moved to join the team in Foxtons Hampstead, where it originated, and will be working from the same office. Both Sales and Lettings for West Hampstead will be handled by the same fantastic team, providing the same great level of service. Like every business, we regularly review the size and shape of our network to ensure it meets the needs of today’s customers.”
EYE NEWSFLASH: Almost 5,000 branches close in tough year for UK’s high street estate agents
