Estate and letting agents submitted just 890 suspicious activity reports (SARs) in 2024-25, down from 1,044 the previous year, while the legal sector increased its reporting from 2,419 to 3,392 over the same period.
Figures published in the 2024-25 annual report from the UK Financial Intelligence Unit (UKFIU) show a widening gap between the two sectors, with legal professionals now submitting 3.8 times more SARs than property agents, compared with 2.3 times more in the previous year.
Defence Against Money Laundering (DAML) requests tell a similar story, with the legal sector submitting nearly three times more DAMLs than the property sector in 2024-25, at 1,336 and 454 respectively.
The data reveals “a concerning divergence” in financial crime detection across the property sector, Credas Technologies CTO Neil Williams said.
“This data should be a wake-up call for the property sector,” he added.
“After years of gradual improvement, we’re now moving in the wrong direction. The legal sector has shown a 40% increase in reporting during the same period – proving that practitioners can adapt to new systems whilst maintaining vigilance. The property sector’s decline suggests agents are either missing red flags or failing to report them.”
The findings are particularly concerning given that property transactions remain a known target for money laundering activity, Williams said.
“Lower SAR volumes are unlikely to indicate reduced criminal activity – instead, they point to potential gaps in detection and compliance processes.”
Credas argues that digital identity verification and reusable compliance checks – such as digital wallets – could help address these detection gaps by streamlining KYC and AML processes, making it easier for agents to identify and report suspicious activity whilst reducing administrative burden.
“Estate agents are operating in an increasingly complex risk environment, but many are still relying on manual, paper-based compliance processes that make it difficult to spot patterns or anomalies,” Williams explained.
“Digital wallets and automated verification tools don’t just make compliance more efficient – they make it more effective. When identity verification is standardised and digital, red flags become easier to identify and report. The property sector needs to embrace these technologies, not just to meet regulatory obligations, but to genuinely protect the market from exploitation.”
