The average annual gross pay of an estate agent climbed by 3.2% in 2022, reversing the steep decline seen the previous year, hitting its second highest annual level in the last decade, according to research carried out by Nested.

The estate agency analysed data from the Office for National Statistics on the average gross salary of estate agencies and how this level of pay has changed over the last 10 years.

The study reveals that the average gross salary across the sector climbed to £38,898 in 2022.

The average earnings seen in 2022 marked a 3.2% increase on the previous year and 17% higher than the average UK benchmark for the year.

This upward growth reversed the downward trend of the previous year, when the average gross salary earned across the sector fell by a notable 9.6% to £37,770 in 2021 from a decade high peak of £41,788 in 2020.

The latest average earnings of £38,989 also sits some 26% higher when compared to a decade ago and, with the exception of 2020, is the highest annual gross earnings seen across the sector in the last 10 years.

Alice Bullard, MD at Nested, commented: “Following the initial red hot market conditions of the pandemic market boom, the average estate agent saw an annual reduction in earnings to the tune of just over £4,000 in 2021.

“But despite a gradual return to normality continuing in 2022, and with the additional market pressure of increasing interest rates, many will be relieved to see that the earnings on offer via the sector have rebounded.

“It will be interesting to see where we finish in 2023 in this respect as the outlook remains somewhat uncertain, but it’s fair to say that the resilience of the UK property market has provided relative safety and stability for those working within it over the last decade.”