Northwood (estate agent)

Northwood

Type	Private
Industry	Letting agent, Estate agent, Real Estate
Founded	1995
Headquarters	Fareham, United Kingdom
Website	www.northwooduk.com

Northwood is a network of letting and estate agents with over 70 branches across the UK dealing with residential property sales and letting.

The first Northwood office was opened in Portsmouth in 1995 and, after the opening of a number of other branches, was turned into a national franchise operation in 1999. Offices are now located in cities across England, Scotland and Wales.

One of the key services provided by Northwood is a guaranteed rental scheme whereby each landlord is offered a guaranteed income.

History

The business began in August 1995, with a small office located on the south coast of the UK in Portsmouth, Hampshire by Andrew Goodson. The introduction of the Guaranteed rent offering proved hugely popular with Landlords who were risk adverse.

The business was initially called Residential Lettings and offered purely the guaranteed rent product. The complimentary traditional letting services were introduced in 1997 to sit alongside the guaranteed rent offering.

The Franchise Company was formed in 1999 and the first office (then called Residential Lettings) was opened in Milton Keynes, Bedford, UK. The company changed its name in 2002 from Residential lettings to Northwood but kept the ‘keys’ Logo, until its rebrand in 2005 to the current NorthwoodUK.com brand and Logo with coincided with the introduction of Estate Agency throughout England and Wales.

NorthwoodUK.com first filed for a community trade mark (CTM) on the name Northwood in 2002 which continues to be renewed.

Corporate overview

Northwood UK.com currently has 20,000 customers that it looks after on a day to day basis.

NorthwoodUK.com offices are located in most major towns and spans most of the UK with offices from Aberdeen in Scotland to Turuo in Cornwall. There are over 75 Northwood offices across the UK employing over 350 people.

Types of Services

Most NorthwoodUK.com offices offer both Lettings and Estate Agency services, although some will only act for their existing clients in the estate agency arm of the business. Estate Agency is not currently offered customers in Scotland. The majority of the companies revenue is derived from its Lettings services.

Business model

All NorthwoodUK.com offices are operated under a Franchise agreement, allowing the franchisees to operate within a specific territory, usually allocated on a postcode basis. This territory is normally generous enough for the franchisee to open between 1-3 offices. Additional territories can be purchased should the franchisee wish to do so.

NorthwoodUK.com franchisees are high calibre individuals who have prior experience in large companies, although not necessarily property. All franchisees undergo a 10 year FSA approved screen prior to being granted a franchise.

Northwooduk.com is accredited by The Guild of Letting Management to offer its franchisees a level 5 BTECH in residential property management, this is a year long course with a final exam marked by Edexcel.