Hiring an in-house administrator vs a specialist surveying support team: what it really costs

The short answer: even at the national minimum wage, a full-time in-house administrator costs a surveying firm around £30,258 a year once employer's National Insurance and pension are added. That's about £2,522 a month, whether you're busy or not. It's one person, so when they're on holiday, off sick or already on the phone, nobody else is covering. A specialist team like JAMY works differently. You pay according to how much work you have, and there are always three people on your account.

Neither option is right for everyone. Here's how the numbers and the practicalities compare, so you can work out which one fits your firm.

What an in-house administrator really costs

Let's start with the cheapest version possible: someone full time on the UK national minimum wage.

That's the bare minimum, and it's a fixed cost. You pay it in your busiest month and you pay it in the quiet weeks before Christmas.

And realistically, you won't get the best person for the job at minimum wage. Someone who already knows the surveying industry, the lead providers, the difference between a Level 2 and a Level 3 and how to talk to an estate agent about access will cost quite a lot more.

The costs that aren't on the payslip

The salary is only part of it. You'll also need to think about:

• Holiday. A full-time employee is entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year, which is 28 days including bank holidays. Someone has to cover that.
• Sickness. Same again, except you don't get any warning.
• Equipment and software. A laptop, a phone, licences, and somewhere for them to work.
• Your time managing them. Every hour you spend on this is an hour you're not surveying.

If you end up covering the gaps yourself, that's you off inspections. For a surveyor, time off inspections is lost income.

The one-person problem

Even the best administrator in the world is still one person.

When they're on the phone to a buyer, the next enquiry that rings in goes unanswered. When they're dealing with an estate agent about access, the emails pile up.
When they're on holiday for a fortnight in August, your leads sit until they're back, or until you deal with them at 10pm.

That matters more in surveying than in most businesses. Buyers usually contact three or four surveyors at once and book with whoever gets back to them first. A missed call isn't a callback for later. It's often a job that's gone to someone else.

How a specialist team works instead

At JAMY, we've set things up to deal with exactly those problems.

You pay according to how much work you have.

Our packages are priced by the number of survey jobs we manage for you each month. If you're doing less, we're doing less, and your fee is lower. The more work you have, the busier we are, and the higher the fee.

It works both ways. A lower-volume surveyor can get proper support without locking into a high fixed cost, and when you go on holiday, the cost comes down with your workload.

There are always three people on your account. Every surveyor we work with has their own three-person JAMY team, led by an Account Manager. If a call comes in and the first person is already on the phone, it goes straight to the second. Your inbox works the same way, so nothing waits for one person to be free. There are no gaps in service.

If someone on your team is off, a colleague from another JAMY team steps in to cover. You don't have to arrange anything, and your diary and enquiries keep moving.

We already know surveying. Our team has a combined 15 years of surveying experience, including large national surveying firms and surveying lead generation businesses. We already handle enquiries from reallymoving, Pinlocal, Konnect You (formerly CMM), Local Surveyors Direct and Local Building Surveyor, and we work in Survey Booker or a bespoke CRM we set up for you. There's no training period where you're teaching someone what a Level 3 is.

Side-by-side comparison

What JAMY costs at each level

To be straight about it: at the higher packs, our monthly fee is more than one minimum-wage administrator. At that point, though, you're comparing one person on a fixed salary with a three-person team that's booking 46 or more jobs a month for you, with cover built in. The fee only goes up because your work has.

When hiring in-house makes more sense

Outsourcing isn't always the right answer. An in-house administrator may suit you better if:

You want someone physically in your office doing a wide mix of tasks that have nothing to do with enquiries and bookings.

You already have a strong admin team and just need one more person to slot into it.

You want to build your own in-house team long term and have the time to recruit, train and manage them.

And if you've got very few enquiries, the first job is getting more leads, not more admin. We don't generate leads (yet). We convert the ones you already have.

Should you outsource or hire?

Ask yourself three questions:

Are enquiries being missed or answered late because you or your admin are busy with something else?

What happens when your admin is on holiday or off sick? If the honest answer is "I do it in the evenings", that's a cost too.

Does your workload go up and down? If it does, a fixed salary means paying for capacity you don't always use.

If you answered yes to any of those, it's worth having a chat. Call us on 020 4572 1829 or email jemma@jamybusinesssupport.co.uk, and we'll look at your current workload with you and tell you honestly which option makes more sense.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an in-house administrator cost a surveying firm?⌄

At the 2026 national minimum wage for a full-time role, around £30,258 a year (£2,522 a month), including employer's National Insurance and a standard workplace pension. Someone with surveying experience will usually cost more, and that's before holiday cover, recruitment and equipment.

How much does JAMY cost?⌄

Our packages are priced by the number of survey jobs we secure for you each month. They start at £1,100 + VAT for up to 15 jobs and go up to £3,500 + VAT for 76 to 100 jobs. There's a one-off £250 + VAT onboarding fee, and every new client starts with a three-month trial.

What happens when someone on my JAMY team is off?⌄

A colleague from another JAMY team steps in to cover, so your enquiries, quotes and diary keep moving.

Will my clients know they're dealing with an outsourced team?⌄

No. We work under your business name, using your prices and processes.

Can JAMY work alongside my existing administrator?⌄

Yes. We can support your existing team with overflow or holiday cover, with responsibilities agreed upfront. Holiday cover for your own administrator is £150 a day + VAT.

Written by Jemma Redpath, founder of JAMY Business Support. Jemma has worked in surveying since 2018 and with her team oversees the daily operations of over 30 UK surveying businesses. Wage figures based on the national minimum wage from April 2026.

Employer cost assumptions: 2026/27 National Living Wage of £12.71 per hour for workers aged 21+, 15% employer National Insurance above the £5,000 annual secondary threshold, and a 3% employer pension contribution on qualifying earnings. Illustrative costs exclude any Employment Allowance and additional employment costs. Confirm your own circumstances with your accountant.

Sources: GOV.UK 2026/27 employer rates and thresholds; The Pensions Regulator auto-enrolment thresholds.

UK employer rates and thresholds · Pension qualifying earnings

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