Estate agent AML checks increase by 31% in 2022

Leading identity verification checks provider, Credas Technologies, claims that anti-money laundering registrations in the real estate sector are set to grow by 30% in 2022.

Reasons behind the rapid growth are likely to be connected to the real estate agent sector trying to up its game and put protective measures in place.

Money laundering criminals often funnel dirty money into, for example, housing, for it to come out of the other end clean. Therefore the market as a whole has had to put processes in place as a form of protection and to remain compliant.

UK AML registrations

Credas Technologies reveal that in Q3 2022 there were 136,913 AML registrations submitted by UK estate agencies. This marks a -3.7% decline in registrations compared to Q2 2022.

The figures from Q3 2022 are still 31.3% higher than those from a year earlier and 40% higher than Q3 2020.

So far this year 460,923 buyers have registered for AML checks. Credas forecast that by the end of the year there will be a total of 540,955 buyers registered. 

If these figures do come to fruition that will mark a 30% annual increase compared to 2021’s overall registration numbers, and will equate to 1,482 buyer checks daily.

Tim Barnett, chief executive officer of Credas Technologies, said: “The housing market continues to move at pace and while a marginal quarterly decline in AML checks suggest that this pace is starting to slow, there remains a high volume of buyers entering the market.”

“A substantial annual increase in AML checks highlights just how busy the market has been in 2022 despite the doom and gloom narrative of the last few months. We’ve also seen an uplift in AML fines issued to estate agents, but both of these metrics indicate that the industry is taking the task at hand seriously and this is great to see.”

“However, as we enter a more turbulent period it remains paramount that the nation’s estate agents continue the outstanding example set in 2022 and ensure that AML compliance remains robust."