30 Years as a Land Agent

Tue 15 Sep 2026

30 years as a Land Agent.

Andrew Samuel founded Samuel & Son in 2005 but his career in rural property started long before that, graduating from Newcastle University and Cirencester, then moving to East Sussex in 1996 to work with Strutt & Parker in Lewes and Charles Clark & Co.

The job has changed a great deal since then. Thirty years ago a land agent's work centred on traditional estate management, landlord & tenant arrangements, sales and acquisitions and straightforward valuations. Today, with traditional land management and subsidy systems having all but gone, works involve the likes of renewable energy schemes, BNG, diversification and alternative land uses, and increasingly complex succession and inheritance planning as family farms pass between generations in a very different tax and business environment to the one their parents faced. Andrew's own move into strategic advice reflects that shift, from a profession built on land values alone to one built on enhanced income generation from land, energy, diversification and other opportunities arise. Whilst land remains the common denominator how it’s used commercially has changed immeasurably.

However, what hasn't changed is the value of knowing an area and the people in it and affording advice derived from experience and professional expertise gained over time. Indeed, over the past 30 years, aside from setting up Samuel & Son, Andrew has served as the Chair of Sussex RABI, Southern Renewable Energy Forum, sat on the South of England Agricultural Society Cabinet, been Chair of the local Cricket Club and helped deliver Horam Neighbourhood Plan amongst other things.

Three decades on, and with both of his now two sons involved in the business, this breadth of knowledge and experience has proved vital in assisting clients and delivering bespoke solutions in a multitude of often difficult situations and circumstances. Andrew and his excellent team look forward to the next 30 years and beyond of serving clients and satisfying their property needs.

 01435 810077 | www.samuelandson.co.uk