Employed agents are being urged to consider whether working for a company is in their best interest when it comes to making money from selling or letting properties.

Treasury minister, Darren Jones, is among those in the Labour party who have conceded that the measures announced by the chancellor Rachel Reeves in the budget last week will hit working people after she unveiled a £25bn rise in employers’ national insurance contributions while also lowering the threshold at which they start paying it from £9,100 to £5,000.

The move has left some employers questioning whether they can afford to continue employing staff on their existing salaries, and employees contemplating whether they can make more money in the face of potentially lower wages by setting up their own business.

Sean Newman, founder of The Property Experts, is unsurprisingly, given the nature of his franchise business, among those that believes more agents should consider taking the plunge and going solo.

Newman said: “Less than 24 hours after the budget and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves was already admitting that her £40bn tax-raising budget was likely to hit pay for workers.

“She said it’s likely her increases in employer NI contributions [up from 13.2% to 15%] is likely to affect employee pay packets as businesses either absorb the increase or award lower wage increases.

“All of which is bad news for property professionals employed in traditional agencies up and down the country.

“And, as if to add insult to injury, the 6.7% increase in the Minimum Living Wage to £12.21 an hour from next April will also add to the wage bill of some agencies with full and part-time staff.

“This could result in some businesses having to reduce costs and make staff redundant

“This is where self-employed agents have the edge in terms of cost control. Because they are building a business around themselves as individuals, they can work flexibly and control their costs more effectively through technology – without the need to employ others or pay for expensive premises.”

“So, if there are confident, experienced agents out there who don’t relish the prospect of stagnating wages, I say to them that they should strongly consider going it alone and joining the growing band of self-employed property professionals growing their own businesses and creating their own work-life balance.”

Franchising of estate agents has long been popular in the US, but it is increasingly big business here, as national and international firms view the franchising route as the best way to expand their own business in the UK, creating fresh opportunities for start-up agents.

The Property Experts, like other franchise businesses, is constantly looking to expand its brand presence in new areas.

Newman added: “We know that the market here in the UK is trending more towards the US and Australian model every day with more and more agents working for themselves.

“The state of the market and the budget is giving ambitious property professionals the opportunity to get a head start by branching out right now and building their business for the future.”