Craven & Company

What Craven & Company does

Craven & Company (Estates) Limited is a privately held, family-run estate and lettings agency headquartered at 98 School Road in Sale town centre, Greater Manchester, founded in 1984 by managing director Dermot Craven. The firm operates as a traditional high street residential agency serving vendors, purchasers, landlords, and tenants primarily in Sale, South Manchester, and Cheshire, with listings also marketed nationally via Rightmove and Zoopla.

The service portfolio covers residential property sales, lettings, and full lettings management (with management fees of 8-12% of monthly rent plus VAT), augmented by a cash purchase service offering 14-day completions, a self-management listing tier for landlord-led viewings, and a £250 referral incentive scheme. The underlying technology stack is standard for UK estate agency: property listing software, portal integrations, CRM, and property management tooling, with no proprietary platform or AI capabilities disclosed.

Revenue is generated through sales commissions, recurring lettings management fees, one-off tenant-find and self-management listing fees, and the spread on cash purchases. The customer base is highly fragmented across individual SMB-segment consumers (homeowners, buyers, landlords, tenants, first-time buyers, and a small enterprise-classified investor cohort), with no enterprise anchor customers. Distribution relies on the Sale branch, UK portals, social channels (Facebook, X, Instagram), a content/blog presence, and the referral scheme; the firm holds Property Redress Scheme membership and UK GDPR compliance.

Name

Craven & Company

Legal name

Craven & Company (Estates) Limited

Website

https://cravenandcompany.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Craven & Company is a privately held, family-run estate and lettings agency founded in 1984 in Sale, Greater Manchester. It serves vendors, purchasers, landlords, and tenants in South Manchester and Cheshire with residential sales, lettings, full management, and a cash purchase service.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Sale

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Sales Commission: Traditional estate agency commission on property sales, typically a percentage of the sale price. The company offers various marketing packages for vendors.
2. Lettings Management Fees: Property management services for landlords with fees ranging from 8-12% of monthly rent plus VAT, including tenant-finding only or full management options. Covers compliance, rent collection, maintenance coordination, and tenant relationship management.
3. Listing/Self-Management Service: One-off fee packages for landlords who want to self-manage while using Craven's marketing platforms and services, including listing on leading property portals.
4. Cash Purchase Service: The company offers to purchase properties directly for cash with completion as fast as 14 days, providing instant valuation and cash offers to sellers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Craven & Company is a family-run estate and lettings agency based in Sale, Greater Manchester, founded in 1984. The firm sells, lets, and manages residential properties across Sale, Greater Manchester, and Cheshire, and also offers a cash purchase service for vendors, a self-management service for landlords, free property valuations, and a referral scheme.

Product overview

Craven & Company operates as a traditional estate and lettings agency offering a unified service model rather than a modular software platform. The core offering encompasses residential property sales, lettings, and lettings management services. Additional offerings include a cash purchase service for quick property sales (14-day completion), a self-management option for cost-conscious sellers, and a referral incentive scheme. The company also provides free property valuations and professional property management for landlords. All services are delivered through their high street branch in Sale, Greater Manchester, with no software-as-a-service or technology platform components.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Property Sales Service
• Lettings Service
• Lettings Management Service
• Sell Your Property for Cash
• Self-Management Service
• Free Property Valuations
• Referral Scheme

Quantifiable outcome

• Properties can sell in as little as 24 hours
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• RightmovecoreTechnology or IntegrationPrimary property listing portal partner where Craven & Company lists properties for sale and rent, reaching millions of potential property buyers and tenants across the UK.
• ZooplacoreTechnology or IntegrationSecondary property listing portal partner providing additional exposure for listed properties across the UK property market.
• Property Redress Scheme (PRS)coreOthersRegulatory membership ensuring professional standards and providing consumer protection for property transactions. Members are bound by a strict code of practice.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Yopa: UK hybrid estate agent combining online listing with local agent support. Comparable as an alternative model targeting the same vendors and landlord customers Craven serves, particularly those seeking lower fees.
• Purplebricks: UK hybrid online estate agent offering fixed-fee sales with optional add-on services. A representative of the disruptive online/hybrid model that pressures commission-based independents like Craven.

Direct peers

• Bridgfords: Established UK estate agency chain with significant North West presence, offering sales, lettings, and mortgage services. Comparable due to regional UK residential focus and similar service set to Craven.
• Belvoir: UK national network of franchised estate and lettings agencies with strong recurring property management revenue. Directly comparable given Craven's material lettings management exposure and per-branch operating model.
• Reeds Rains: Long-established UK estate agency chain providing sales, lettings, and mortgage services. Comparable to Craven's heritage-style positioning, broad service mix, and regional UK operating model.
• Martin & Co: UK property franchise group specialising in residential lettings and sales. Comparable to Craven's landlord-tenant orientation and mixed sales/lettings service offering at the branch level.
• Hunters: UK-wide estate agency franchise network offering residential sales, lettings, and property management. Most directly comparable to Craven in service mix and target customer (vendors, landlords, tenants in regional UK markets).

Broad incumbents

• Knight Frank: Global real estate consultancy with significant UK residential agency and property management operations. Comparable as a wide-portfolio incumbent in the same service categories, though skewed toward premium segments.
• Chestertons: Long-established UK estate and letting agency with sales, lettings, and property management services. Comparable as a heritage incumbent covering the same fundamental customer needs as Craven, albeit at a larger scale.
• Savills: Global real estate services firm with extensive UK residential sales and lettings capability. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the same addressable market, with overlapping capabilities though operating at a much larger scale and premium positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/craven_co
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• Instagraminstagram.com/cravenandcompanylimited
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/craven-and-company

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Craven & Company