The UK property sector has recorded a gender pay gap of 14.2%, placing it fourth among all industries for pay disparity, according to research from estate agency Yopa.
The analysis found that only Financial & Insurance (27.9%), Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (26.5%), and Professional, Scientific & Technical sectors reported wider gaps between male and female earnings.
Decade-long deterioration
The data shows the real estate gender pay gap has widened by 1.6 percentage points over the past decade, from 2015 to 2025. The most significant movement occurred in the past year, with the gap increasing by 5.5 percentage points, marking the third-largest annual increase across all UK industries.
Only Mining & Quarrying (12.7 percentage points) and Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (11.2 percentage points) recorded larger year-on-year increases.
Industry response
Verona Frankish, chief executive officer at Yopa and Chair of Women in Estate Agency, said: “It’s incredibly frustrating to see that, despite years of discussion and greater awareness around workplace equality, the gender pay gap within the real estate sector is not only persisting but widening.”
She added that addressing the issue “requires genuine commitment from across the industry, from improving transparency around pay structures to ensuring equal opportunities for progression into senior and leadership roles.”
Market implications
The widening pay gap may present challenges for property firms seeking to recruit and retain talent in an increasingly competitive employment market. The disparity could also affect the sector’s ability to attract diverse professionals at a time when many industries are implementing measures to address workplace equality.
The findings indicate that despite broader national efforts to reduce gender pay inequality, the property sector continues to move in the opposite direction, with the gap expanding at an accelerated rate in recent years.