{
  "id": 17990419,
  "title": "Investors urge Foxtons to face up to property market slump",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/investors-urge-foxtons-to-face-up-to-property-market-slump",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-11-03T16:06:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "City AM",
    "slug": "city-am",
    "url": "https://www.cityam.com/investors-urge-foxtons-to-face-up-to-property-market-slump/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Investors in estate agency Foxtons are urging the company to acknowledge the struggling UK property market and take action such as pursuing consolidation and halting dividends. Michael Rapps, managing partner of Converium Capital, owns about seven percent of Foxtons and suggests the estate agency should instead invest in share buyback schemes of up to £20m annually. Rapps also advocates for Foxtons to pursue more takeovers of rival estate agencies to safeguard against the slowdown in the UK's property market. House prices in London, where Foxtons primarily operates, have been declining, with investors pointing to high mortgage rates and rising stamp duty charges. House price decline has been coupled with a three percent drop in revenue and a more than halved pre-tax profit for Foxtons, which operates about 60 branches in the UK. Despite a challenging sales market, the firm has completed 13 acquisitions over the past five years, strengthening its position in existing markets and opening up opportunities in high-growth areas. The company, however, maintains that its capital allocation policy is designed to balance the interests of its diverse shareholder base and the long-term health of the business.",
  "summary": "Estate agency Foxtons has been urged by some of its biggest shareholders to face up to the UK’s struggling property market by pursuing consolidation and halting its dividend. The London-listed firm has faced opposition from its investors on several fronts in recent months, including share buybacks, political donations and takeovers of rival estate agencies. Foxtons [...]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}