While many estate agents are feeling the pinch of a sluggish property sales market, The Property Franchise Group (TPFG) has brushed off the gloom to post record half-year figures. The AIM-listed company, which owns brands such as Martin & Co, EweMove and Hunters, reported a 7% increase in group revenue to £43.3 million for the six months ending 30 June 2026. Adjusted pre-tax profit rose by the same margin to £15.5 million, and adjusted EBITDA edged up 3% to £16.2 million. The results came despite what the group itself described as a subdued sales environment, suggesting that its heavily lettings-weighted portfolio and franchise model are providing a buffer against wider market coolness.
TPFG’s performance stands out at a time when buyer sentiment has been dampened by higher mortgage costs and economic uncertainty. Transaction volumes across the UK have fallen, and many independent agents have reported longer selling times. Yet the group’s strategic focus on recurring income streams from property management and franchise fees has allowed it to grow profits even when the traditional sales pipeline is quieter. It is a narrative that challenges the headline story of a property market stuck in the doldrums. The figures reveal a business that is not simply riding the market waves but actively managing its exposure to them.
Peaks and valleys across the UK
| District | Post town | Region | Avg elevation |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA9 | Alston | North West | 350m |
| NP23 | Ebbw Vale | Wales | 337m |
| NP22 | Tredegar | Wales | 320m |
| SK17 | Buxton | East Midlands | 320m |
| AB36 | Strathdon | Scotland | 318m |
| BD13 | Bradford | Yorkshire and The Humber | 290m |
| AB37 | Ballindalloch | Scotland | 276m |
| OL13 | Bacup | North West | 275m |
| PH23 | Carrbridge | Scotland | 267m |
| AB35 | Ballater | Scotland | 257m |
Postcode district CA9, covering the market town of Alston and the surrounding North Pennines, claims the title of the highest postcode in the country. The entire district sits at an average elevation of 350 metres above sea level, with the highest ground reaching 521 metres. That is a landscape of steep fells, windswept moorland and isolated farmsteads, a world away from the high-street branches of corporate estate agents. Yet its elevation data, fixed and unyielding, offers a different kind of insight into the peaks that can be achieved even in a challenging environment.
What the highest postcode tells us about outperformance
On the surface, there is little to connect a remote Cumbrian postcode to the boardroom of a national property franchise group. Yet the altitude data from CA9 offers a useful analogy for TPFG’s latest results. Just as the average elevation of the district is 350 metres but its peak soars to 521 metres, the property market’s average metrics can conceal remarkable individual performances. While the wider sales market may be subdued, TPFG’s revenue and profit have climbed to new highs, driven by the parts of the business that are performing well above the sector baseline. The group’s management has effectively positioned the company to capture value from the more resilient lettings sector, just as the terrain of CA9 captures the clouds and the attention of hill walkers. The 521-metre summit is not typical of the district, but it is the headline figure that defines it. Similarly, TPFG’s record profits are the headline, even if the group’s typical branch may not be seeing such stellar growth.
The CA9 district is a reminder that averages are often just that: a midpoint that smooths out the extremes. In the estate agency world, a company’s success is not simply the sum of its high-street branches but the product of strategic decisions that allow it to rise above the general trend. The elevation data we hold at Postcodes UK is a fixed geographic fact, immune to economic cycles. When the market is subdued, the high ground remains. By looking at the highest postcode, we see a symbol of what can be achieved when the conditions are right and the strategy is sound. TPFG’s latest numbers show that even when the sales landscape is flat, profits can still reach for the summit.
The data behind this
The elevation statistics for postcode districts are drawn from the Postcodes UK database, which integrates topographic data from Ordnance Survey, property transaction records from HM Land Registry, and demographic information from the ONS census. The financial figures for The Property Franchise Group were reported by the company and published by Property Industry Eye.
In response to reporting by Property Industry Eye. Analysis and figures by Postcodes UK.