Estate agents are roughly the equivalents of real estate brokers in the United States. Just like their American counterparts, estate agents engage in arranging the sale, purchase, lease or management of properties in the United Kingdom.

Estate agents may have their own specialties. Some estate agents may specialise in the handling of residential properties. Some work more with commercial properties whilst others deal with agricultural properties. The estate agents who focus on property rentals are called letting agents.

Most estate agents in England and Wales only work on the marketing and sale of properties. The actual legal work and documentation is handled by a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer. It is possible for an estate agent to be a solicitor as well, but this is a common practice only in Scotland.

A person must have the appropriate training, qualifications and certification before he or she can work as an estate agent. Estate agents are regulated by the Office of Fair Trade, and they also have trade associations such as the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA).

If you are looking for an estate agent to buy or sell property, you should inquire as to what qualifications the agent has. This is your home you would be talking about, so it is important that you take care in choosing the right estate agent. There are more than 18,000 estate agents operating in the United Kingdom, some working as individual agents whilst some operating as partners in an agency. You can also seek their services if you are looking for a second home abroad.