Land agent may be used in at least three different contexts. Traditionally, a land agent was a managerial employee who conducted the business affairs of a large

landed estate In real estate, a landed property or landed estate is a property that generates income for the owner (typically a member of the gentry) without the owner having to do the actual work of the estate. In medieval Western Europe, there were two compe ...

for a member of the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

landed gentry The landed gentry, or the gentry (sometimes collectively known as the squirearchy), is a largely historical Irish and British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. It is t ...

, supervising the farming of the property by farm labourers and/or tenants and collecting rents or other payments. In this context a land agent was a relatively privileged position and was a senior member of the estate's staff. The older term, which continued to be used on some estates, was steward, and in Scotland a land agent was usually referred to as a factor. Today the term estate manager or similar is more common.

Other uses

A land agent, also called a warrant agent, may also be a real estate agent or broker who specialises in land and farm sales. Land and farm sales differ drastically from sales of houses, therefore there is the need for specialisation. This usage is found in the United Kingdom,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and the United States. In the UK a land agent may also advise on related law, tax and planning matters. The land agent can also be an agent of the oil and mining industry who negotiates with landowners for mineral and surface rights for the potential extraction of those minerals. This usage is primarily found in the United States and in Canada. In the Canadian jurisdiction of the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

, a land agent is an employee of the federal department of Indigenous and Northern Affairs tasked with guiding individuals wishing to purchase or lease

crown land Crown land, also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it. Today, in Commonwealth realm ...

through the application process.

References

Real estate Land agents {{farm-stub