Is that sourcing fee fair?
Deal sourcers charge anywhere from £500 to £6,000+ per deal, and the industry has more cowboys than most. Check a quoted fee against market norms. More importantly, check the sourcer.
That's 2.9% of the purchase price
Within the market range
UK sourcing fees typically run £2,000 to £6,000 fixed or 1 to 5% of purchase price (most commonly 1 to 3%). The fee is only half the question though. What's included and whether they're compliant matter more.
What's included in the fee?
A market-rate fee should include most of this list. One tick or none is a deal-pack mill, not a sourcing service.
The checklist that matters more than the fee
Sourcing deals for a fee is legally estate agency work in the UK. Before paying anyone a penny, ask for proof of all four. A compliant sourcer will show them without flinching:
- ✅ Redress scheme membership (The Property Ombudsman or PRS, searchable on their sites)
- ✅ HMRC anti-money-laundering registration (trading without it is a criminal offence)
- ✅ Professional indemnity insurance
- ✅ ICO registration (they hold your personal data)
No proof, no deal, however good the numbers look. And never send reservation money to a personal bank account.
Being quoted this fee right now? Ask if anyone in the room has dealt with the sourcer before you sign anything.
Ask in the free DiscordWhy we built this: sourcing for a fee is legally estate agency work: redress membership, anti-money-laundering registration and insurance aren't optional extras, they're the law. Most buyers don't know to ask. Now you do. The market-norm figures come from our 2026 research across UK sourcing services.
Learn how deals get valued in the below-market-value guide. Education, not financial advice. Ask about any sourcer in the free Discord. Someone may have dealt with them.