Agent-Managed or Self-Managed: Which Tenants Are Happier With Repairs?

Private renters are more satisfied with repairs when the landlord looks after them than when an agent does. In the government's English Housing Survey for 2024–25, 73.5% of private renters whose landlord was responsible for repairs were satisfied with their repairs or maintenance. Where an estate agent, letting agent or property manager was responsible, the figure was 59.0%. If you are thinking about full management because it feels like the safer choice, the official data on repairs does not show tenants getting a better service from it. Figures as published, checked 22 October 2026.

What the English Housing Survey found

The English Housing Survey is the government's annual survey of housing in England. Its report Perceptions and impacts of housing quality, published on 9 July 2026, splits private renters by who is responsible for repairs (chapter 3, figure 3.3; underlying data in Annex Table 3.2):

Weighted up to the whole country, that is about 2.6 million renting households where the landlord handles repairs and about 1.3 million where an agent or property manager does. The report's own text rounds the two headline figures to 74% and 59%.

Two things the survey does not tell you:

• It does not separate full management from other arrangements. The split is by who is responsible for repairs, not by the type of agency contract. Renters who said neither the landlord nor an agent was responsible are left out.
• It does not say why. Homes where an agent handles repairs may differ in other ways. Their landlords may live further away, or own more properties, or own different kinds of home. A gap in a national survey is a reason to ask questions. It is not proof that any particular agent does worse than any particular landlord.

More landlords are using agents anyway

The gap has not stopped agent use from rising. On 26 August 2026 the National Residential Landlords Association reported a Pegasus Insight poll of 567 of its members, carried out between 21 June and 10 July 2026. It found that 66% of private rentals in England and Wales are administered by a letting agent in some way, the highest share for at least two years. The NRLA says landlords are turning to agents "to help navigate the complexities of the Renters' Rights Act and prepare for further regulation". It published the English Housing Survey repairs comparison in the same release and called for minimum training standards for agency staff.

Further Pegasus Insight figures, reported on 13 October 2026, break that 66% down. It was up from 61% in the first quarter of 2026 and 62% a year earlier. A quarter of rental properties (25%) were on full management, up from 20% the previous quarter. Another 34% used an agent only to find tenants, 6% for letting and rent collection, and the remaining 34% were managed without an agent.

So landlords are handing more over to agents just as the official data shows renters rating agent-handled repairs lower. Neither figure tells you which choice is right for you. Together, though, they are a reason not to assume that full management buys a better repairs service.

Why the gap might exist

The survey does not explain the difference. The following is reasoning, not a finding:

• The landlord has a direct financial stake. A slow or poor repair can cost the landlord a good tenant, a void month or a bigger bill later. An agent paid a percentage of the rent earns roughly the same fee whether a repair is done in two days or two weeks.
• The agent has a workload. A property manager handles requests for many properties at once, so each one joins a queue. Under many management agreements, work above a set cost also needs the landlord's approval, which adds another step before anything happens.
• The landlords are not alike. Landlords who keep repairs in their own hands may be the ones who live nearby and have a builder they trust. That would show up in the numbers even if it says nothing about agents.

Any of these could be part of it, and none of them is established by the data.

The honest counter-argument: it takes time

Self-managing is not free. In the same Pegasus Insight research reported on 13 October 2026, landlords who managed their properties themselves spent an average of 51 hours a month on it. Landlords using full management spent 11 hours. The average across all landlords was 33 hours. For small portfolios the numbers are lower: landlords with one to five properties averaged 18 hours a month across all ways of managing, and those with eleven or more averaged 83.

The time is real, and repairs are a large part of it. A tenant reports a problem, you find a tradesperson, arrange access, check the work and pay the invoice. What makes this manageable is a system, not more effort. That means one place where every repair request is logged with the date it came in and what was done, a short list of contractors you trust, and certificate dates you never have to keep in your head. The landlords in the 73.5% are not working harder than everyone else. They are close enough to the problem to deal with it.

If you are weighing the whole decision, including cost and who carries the legal risk, do you actually need a letting agent? works through it for a landlord with one to three properties.

What stays with you either way

An agent takes on tasks, not ownership. In the NRLA's own words, "landlords are ultimately responsible for ensuring the properties they rent meet all required standards". So whoever manages, keep your own record of every certificate, its expiry date and every repair request, rather than relying on the agent's system to tell you. The free Compliance Tracker lists which checks apply to your property and emails you before each one falls due, whether or not you use an agent.

See what the fee buys you

If you are paying for full management, or about to, put a figure on it. The Letting Agent Cost Calculator takes your rent and your agent's fee and shows what full management costs you each year and over ten years. Set that against what the repairs data says you get for it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are tenants happier with repairs when the landlord manages them?

In the English Housing Survey 2024–25, 73.5% of private renters whose landlord was responsible for repairs were satisfied with their repairs or maintenance, compared with 59.0% where an estate agent, letting agent or property manager was responsible. Dissatisfaction was 17.4% against 27.6%. The survey records the difference; it does not say what causes it.

Does the survey show that agents carry out repairs more slowly?

No. It measures how satisfied renters are with their repairs or maintenance, not how long repairs take, and it does not separate full management from other arrangements. It is evidence that renters with an agent in charge of repairs are less satisfied on average, not proof about any particular agent.

How much time does self-managing a rental take?

Pegasus Insight research reported in October 2026 put it at an average of 51 hours a month for landlords who manage their properties themselves, against 11 hours for landlords using full management. Landlords with one to five properties averaged 18 hours a month across all ways of managing. The time is real, which is why self-managing landlords need a system rather than memory and a spreadsheet.

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Figures checked against their published sources on 22 October 2026. The English Housing Survey covers England; the NRLA and Pegasus Insight figures cover England and Wales. This article reports published survey data; it is not legal or financial advice.