Historic Humberts wants to build on nine-office franchise network

Historic estate agency group Humberts - which was at risk of disappearing entirely just over two years ago - has opened a new branch.

It’s in Forest Row, East Sussex, and the franchise has been purchased by existing franchisee Simon Lewis - he already has a branch in East Grinstead where he has been operating for over 27 years. 

Humberts, which has existed since 1845, was taken out of administration in January 2020 having been bought by Humberts Group Limited. 

Humberts Group Limited is a consortium of franchise owners that had been running their own offices and trading as Humberts. The sale two years ago included the company, its goodwill, trading name, lettings book, and intellectual property of the brand.

This latest purchase of the East Sussex franchise expands Humberts’ network to nine branches including East Grinstead, Forest Row, Honiton, Norwich, Sevenoaks, Taunton, Truro, Yeovil and York, offering services across residential sales and lettings, new homes, commercial, leisure, farm and land management.

Tim Stephens, head of franchising at Humberts, says: “Humberts continues to seek out estate agents with the ambition to expand and to link in with existing franchise offices across the country. 

“Benefits include exceptional marketing tools, a national media presence via PR and advertising, portal discounts, cross referrals and training courses. We have opportunities for people to start their own business in areas where the brand name and goodwill has been extremely strong. 

“This will provide a great springboard to those starting up and indeed existing companies that may be looking to merge with a national brand to lift their profile and gain access to higher valued properties. 

“Immediate areas that we are looking to fill are London, Kent, Surrey, West Sussex, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, Cotswolds, Hertfordshire and East Midlands. Despite our evolution to become industry leaders, the desire to support people on their property journey continues to underpin our business and ethos. Our customers benefit from our passion, commitment and ability to deliver a bespoke service, whether they are buying or selling, need help with property maintenance or would like to explore letting.”

Director of the latest branch, Simon Lewis, comments: “Thanks to the support that Humberts provides including high spec technology and marketing, 2021 was a bumper year of sales and lettings at my East Grinstead branch. 

“Humberts’ digital services in particular were instrumental in keeping viewings happening during the various lockdowns, which demonstrates the group’s ability to allow businesses to thrive during periods of uncertainty. 

“With buyers flocking to the county following Covid-19, I jumped at the opportunity to purchase a new franchise agreement as Forest Row and the surrounding area have been very popular recently due to its beautiful properties and listed houses together with the excellent lifestyle, schooling and transport links. It is an increasingly desirable place to live, and we believe we can offer potential sellers unrivalled benefits with our local knowledge and support of a long established national brand by having a presence in Forest Row.”