The verdict in three sentences
An Edinburgh letting and property management company whose website predates 2021 often loses landlord enquiries because service pages, fees and the rental valuation form are hard to find on mobile. A redesign costs £8,000 to £25,000 with a local agency in 2026, and £2,300 to £6,900 on the Kolonell fixed grid, with landlord and tenant portals and listings feeds kept on quote. The real risk is not the design: it is losing traffic on pages that already rank (neighbourhoods, management services, landlord guides) if URL migration is improvised.
Which signals show a redesign is due?
Edinburgh's rental market mixes private landlords in the New Town and Morningside, investors in Leith, students around Marchmont and young professionals searching on their phones. A site that fails these distinct audiences is easy to spot:
- valuation requests arrive by phone because the online form is too long or broken on mobile;
- the fees page is out of date, or missing, while landlords and tenants expect fee transparency;
- your Scottish Letting Agent Register number is not clearly displayed;
- the repair request form sends to a generic inbox with no tracking;
- the cookie banner does not meet PECR and trackers fire before consent.
If three of these five points apply, a redesign pays off better than another round of patches.
How much does a redesign cost in 2026?
The ranges below are a 2026 ballpark, based on typical agency quotes and public agency rate pages, for a 15 to 40 page site.
| Option | Redesign budget (GBP) | What is usually included | Typical timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Established Edinburgh agency | 12,000 to 25,000 | Workshops, bespoke design, CMS, simple integrations | 10 to 16 weeks |
| Small Scottish studio | 6,000 to 12,000 | Adapted theme, service pages, forms | 6 to 10 weeks |
| Freelancer | 2,000 to 6,000 | Design and build, light project management | Variable |
| Kolonell Starter | £2,300 | Core brochure site, native copywriting, 3 months of support | 3 to 4 weeks |
| Kolonell Growth | £3,900 | Neighbourhood and service pages, blog, qualified forms | 3 to 4 weeks |
| Kolonell Premium | £6,900 | Richer architecture, Premium (the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote) | 3 to 4 weeks |
The Kolonell grid includes a project manager reachable in your time zone, native English or French copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready and 3 months of support. Details are on the international offer page. On quote: links or integrations with your landlord and tenant portal, listings feeds to property portals, sync with your letting software and any SEO work. As a concrete property reference, Kolonell built the website of Orven Properties (orvenproperties.com), a real estate company based in Dubai.
What is a realistic timeline by phase?
| Phase | Scope | Kolonell duration | Typical local agency duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit and inventory | URL export, pages with traffic, forms | 3 to 4 days | 2 to 3 weeks |
| Content | Services, fees, neighbourhoods, landlord guides | Client side, 1 to 3 weeks | 3 to 6 weeks |
| Design and build | Mockups, CMS, repair and valuation forms | 2 weeks | 4 to 6 weeks |
| Compliance review | Notices, fees, register number, cookies, accessibility | 2 to 3 days | 1 to 2 weeks |
| Go-live and monitoring | 301 redirects, Search Console, testing | 2 days, then 6 weeks of monitoring | 1 week |
The Kolonell 3 to 4 week schedule starts once content is signed off. The phase letting companies most often underestimate is updating the fees page and regulatory wording.
Which risks matter, and how do you control them?
Organic traffic loss. Inventory every existing URL (neighbourhood pages, landlord services, guides), build a page-by-page 301 redirect map, then watch Search Console for 6 weeks after go-live.
Content migration. Expired listings should not be migrated as they are: redirect them to the relevant neighbourhood or category page.
Integrations. The landlord and tenant portal and the listings feed are kept and linked, never rebuilt inside a fixed-price site. Test every login link before the switch.
Personal data. Under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, overseen by the ICO, the repair form collects the minimum: property address, description, optional photos, contact details. No ID documents or bank details in an open form.
Marketing content. Before go-live, have your compliance lead review the pages: displayed fees, register number, wording on short lets (licensing and council rules described in general terms). This is not legal advice.
Accessibility. Target WCAG 2.2 AA as a practical benchmark for Equality Act 2010 duties: contrast, keyboard-usable forms, alt text.
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
When is a local agency the better choice?
To be candid: if your redesign includes a custom-built tenant portal, heavy integration with your management software and weekly in-person workshops in Edinburgh, an established local agency is often the better fit. Kolonell suits letting companies that want a fast, clear, well-written site on a fixed budget with existing integrations kept.
Questions to ask any provider: who writes the redirect map? Who monitors Search Console after the switch? Are integrations priced separately? What happens after the support period?
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Firth & Wynd Lettings, a Leith company managing flats for private landlords. The current site has 60 URLs, 14 of which bring most of the traffic.
- Local agency option: £14,000 redesign, plus maintenance estimated at £150 per month over 33 months (market assumption): 14,000 + 4,950 = £18,950 over 3 years.
- Kolonell Growth option: £3,900, plus a local freelance photographer for team photos at £500 (third-party cost), plus £120 per month over 33 months (market assumption; Kolonell maintenance after the 3 included months on quote): 3,900 + 500 + 3,960 = £8,360 over 3 years.
The portal link and listings feed are priced separately in both cases. The £10,590 gap comfortably funds a content programme aimed at landlords.
FAQ
How long does a letting company website redesign take in Edinburgh?
With Kolonell, 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready. With a local agency, expect 10 to 16 weeks on average, workshops included.
Is the landlord portal included in the fixed price?
No. The existing portal is kept and linked, and that work is priced on quote. The £2,300, £3,900 and £6,900 tiers cover the website itself.
Will I lose my search rankings?
The risk is real if URLs change without redirects. A 301 map covering 100% of pages with traffic and 6 weeks of Search Console monitoring sharply reduce it.
What should the fees page contain?
The fees charged to landlords, set out clearly, and the information expected of letting agents in Scotland. Have it signed off internally before go-live, allowing about 2 to 3 days of review.
What data can the repair form ask for?
Only what is needed: address, description, 1 to 3 optional photos, contact details. Nothing relating to identity or payment.
Let's scope your project. An Edinburgh letting company redesign can be scoped in one call: pages to migrate, integrations to keep, a budget between £2,300 and £6,900, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
