It's 11:42am on a Tuesday. A landlord just gave you the keys to a beautiful two-bedroom flat on Market Street. Rent: £950/month. Available immediately. Prime location. This property will let quickly—IF you can get it advertised today.
Here's what happens next with most property management systems:
- Add property to your system: 15 minutes (entering details, uploading photos)
- Export property data to CSV: 5 minutes (find export function, select property, download)
- Log into Rightmove portal: 3 minutes (navigate to datafeed section)
- Upload CSV and photos: 12 minutes (upload, map fields, verify data)
- Fix validation errors: 18 minutes ("Invalid postcode format", "Photo URLs must have extensions", "Display address too long")
- Reupload after fixes: 8 minutes
- Wait for Rightmove to process: 25-45 minutes (before it goes live)
Total time from keys to live on Rightmove: 2 hours 11 minutes
With LetAdmin: Add property details and photos (15 minutes). Click "Save." Property is live on Rightmove in 30 seconds.
This article explains how automatic Rightmove publishing works and why publishing speed matters when every hour of delay costs you potential tenants.
The Problem: Manual Rightmove Publishing is Slow and Error-Prone
Rightmove dominates UK property search with 130+ million monthly visits. If your properties aren't on Rightmove, you're invisible to 90% of prospective tenants.
But getting properties onto Rightmove quickly is surprisingly difficult:
Problem 1: Manual Data Entry in Multiple Places
Most systems require you to:
- Enter property details in your property management system
- Re-enter (or export/import) those same details in Rightmove's portal
- Upload photos separately to Rightmove (after uploading them to your system)
- Manually sync any changes between the two systems
Result: Every property takes 45-90 minutes to add to Rightmove manually. Every price change, photo update, or description edit requires updating in two places.
Problem 2: Validation Errors Waste Time
Rightmove has strict requirements:
- Display addresses can't include house numbers (privacy requirement)
- Photo URLs must have file extensions (.jpg, .webp)
- Council tax bands must be from approved list
- Property types must map to Rightmove's specific taxonomy
Most systems don't validate against these requirements before you submit. You upload the property, Rightmove rejects it with cryptic error messages, you spend 20 minutes figuring out what's wrong, fix it, reupload, get a different error...
Result: 20-40 minutes wasted per property on validation errors that should have been caught before upload.
Problem 3: Updates Don't Sync Automatically
You reduce rent on a property from £1,000 to £950 to attract more viewings.
In your property system: Takes 30 seconds to update the price.
On Rightmove: You must manually log in, find the property, update the price again. Another 8-12 minutes.
What happens if you forget? The property shows different prices in different places. Tenants notice. They assume you're disorganised. They move on to the next agent.
Result: Price inconsistencies damage your professional image. Every update requires double the work.
How LetAdmin Solves This: Automatic Rightmove Publishing
When you add a property in LetAdmin and click "Save," here's what happens automatically:
Step 1: Property saved in LetAdmin (you do this)
- Enter property details: address, rent, bedrooms, description
- Upload photos (drag-and-drop)
- Click "Save"
Step 2: LetAdmin validates everything instantly
- Checks property data against Rightmove's requirements
- Ensures display address format is correct (no house numbers)
- Verifies all required fields are present
- Confirms photos have proper file extensions
- Validates council tax band is from approved list
If anything is wrong, you see immediate feedback:
- "Display address contains house number - please remove for Rightmove privacy requirements"
- "Council tax band must be A-I or leave blank if unknown"
Fix it now before submitting. No upload failures. No rejected listings.
Step 3: LetAdmin publishes to Rightmove automatically
- Formats property data exactly as Rightmove expects
- Sends via Rightmove's Real-Time Datafeed API
- Includes all photos with proper URLs
- Receives confirmation from Rightmove
Step 4: Property goes live on Rightmove
- Usually live within 30 seconds of clicking "Save" in LetAdmin
- No manual uploads, no CSV exports, no portal logins
- You get confirmation: "Property published to Rightmove successfully"
Real-World Example: How Fast is Automatic Publishing?
Scenario: Landlord gives you keys to new property at 11:42am. You want it live on Rightmove before lunch (12:00pm).
Timeline:
- 11:42am: Receive keys and take photos on phone
- 11:45am: Back at office, create property in LetAdmin:
- Enter address: 2 min
- Add property details (beds, baths, rent, description): 8 min
- Upload photos from phone: 3 min
- Add garden and parking details: 1 min
- Enter deposit and council tax: 1 min
- Click "Save"
- 11:57am: Property saved in LetAdmin
- 11:57:28: LetAdmin validates data and publishes to Rightmove (automatic)
- 11:57:33: Rightmove confirms property received (automatic)
- 11:58:15: Property goes live on Rightmove
Total time: 16 minutes from keys to live on Rightmove
You had it advertised before lunch. That same day, you get 3 viewing enquiries from Rightmove. One of them books a viewing for tomorrow morning.
With manual Rightmove upload: The property wouldn't go live until after 2:00pm (after you'd finished fixing validation errors and waiting for Rightmove to process the upload). Those 3 enquiries probably would have gone to properties that were already live.
Speed matters. The first agent to advertise gets the enquiries.
What Automatically Syncs to Rightmove
Once your Rightmove integration is set up, these changes sync automatically:
New properties:
- Entire property listing published instantly
- All photos uploaded in the order you arranged them
- Property goes live on Rightmove within 30 seconds
Price changes:
- Update rent in LetAdmin → Rightmove updated in 5 seconds
- Same for deposit changes
Status changes:
- Mark property "Let Agreed" → Removed from Rightmove in 5 seconds
- Mark property "Available" again → Republished to Rightmove in 5 seconds
Description updates:
- Edit property description → Rightmove updated in 5 seconds
Photo updates:
- Add new photos → Synced to Rightmove in 5 seconds
- Reorder photos (drag-and-drop in LetAdmin) → Order updated on Rightmove in 5 seconds
- Delete photos → Removed from Rightmove in 5 seconds
Property detail changes:
- Available from date, bedrooms, bathrooms, furnishing status
- Garden, parking, council tax band
- Any property feature change syncs automatically
You update once in LetAdmin. Rightmove reflects the change in seconds. No manual work required.
How It Handles Rightmove's Complex Requirements
Rightmove's API has specific, sometimes quirky requirements. LetAdmin handles all of them automatically:
Display address privacy:
- Rightmove requires addresses without house numbers (security/privacy)
- LetAdmin automatically creates display address: "High Street, Worcester, WR1" (not "123 High Street")
- You don't think about this—it happens automatically
Photo URL requirements:
- Rightmove rejects photo URLs without file extensions
- LetAdmin ensures all photo URLs end in .jpg or .webp
- Your photos just work, no manual URL editing needed
Property type mapping:
- Your system: "Flat"
- Rightmove expects: Type code 0, Style "Apartment"
- LetAdmin automatically translates to Rightmove's taxonomy
Outside space and parking:
- Rightmove uses specific numeric codes for garden types and parking
- You select "Private garden" from dropdown
- LetAdmin sends the correct Rightmove code (33) automatically
Council tax bands:
- Rightmove only accepts valid bands (A-I)
- LetAdmin validates your input before submitting
- If band is unknown ("TBC"), LetAdmin omits it rather than sending invalid data
All these technical requirements are handled automatically. You enter data in normal, human-readable formats. LetAdmin translates to Rightmove's format behind the scenes.
Setup: 5 Minutes, One Time
Getting Rightmove integration working requires one-time setup:
What you need from Rightmove:
- Your Rightmove branch ID (you get this when you sign up with Rightmove)
- Your P12 certificate file (Rightmove provides this for API access)
- Your certificate password (Rightmove provides this)
Setup in LetAdmin:
- Open Integrations page
- Click "Install" on Rightmove app
- Enter your branch ID
- Upload your P12 certificate file (drag-and-drop)
- Enter certificate password
- Click "Activate"
LetAdmin tests the connection, sends a test property to Rightmove, confirms it works.
Total setup time: 5 minutes
After that, every property syncs automatically forever. You never log into Rightmove's portal again.
Reliability: What Happens If Something Goes Wrong
Sometimes external systems have issues. What if Rightmove's servers are down when you publish a property?
LetAdmin automatically handles failures:
- Immediate retry: If Rightmove doesn't respond, LetAdmin retries in 1 minute
- Progressive retries: Still failing? Retry in 5 min, then 25 min, then 2 hours
- Clear notifications: You see: "Rightmove temporarily unavailable - will retry automatically"
- Audit trail: View exactly what was sent, when, and what response was received
- Manual retry: Once Rightmove is back up, retry with one click if needed
You're never stuck with unpublished properties. The system ensures everything eventually reaches Rightmove, even if there are temporary connectivity issues.
What Letting Agents Save with Automatic Publishing
Time savings:
- Manual Rightmove upload: 45-90 min per property
- Automatic publishing: 0 min (happens automatically)
- For an agency adding 4 new properties per month: 3-6 hours saved monthly
Faster time-to-market:
- Manual: 2-3 hours from property details entered to live on Rightmove
- Automatic: 30 seconds from property details entered to live on Rightmove
- Properties appear on Rightmove while they're still "news" to prospective tenants
Elimination of sync errors:
- Manual: Different prices/details on Rightmove vs your system (common problem)
- Automatic: One source of truth, Rightmove always matches your system
- Professional image maintained across all platforms
No validation errors:
- Manual: 20-40 min wasted per property on Rightmove validation errors
- Automatic: Validation happens before submission, fix issues immediately
- No rejected uploads, no mysterious error messages
For a typical 100-property agency:
- Time saved: 3-6 hours per month (property additions + updates)
- Faster advertising: Properties live 2 hours sooner on average
- Zero synchronization errors between systems
- Professional, consistent property presentation
Beyond Rightmove: Coming Soon
The same automatic publishing system will extend to:
Zoopla:
- Same instant publishing
- Same automatic sync
- No manual Zoopla portal logins
OnTheMarket:
- Publish to multiple portals simultaneously
- Update once, sync everywhere
Your agency website:
- Properties automatically appear on your website
- Via webhook integration (your web developer can set this up)
One property entry in LetAdmin, published everywhere automatically.
We'd Love to Hear from You
How long does it currently take you to publish a property to Rightmove? Be honest—most agents underestimate until they time it.
How often do you find inconsistencies between your system and Rightmove? Different prices, outdated descriptions, wrong photos?
What's the most frustrating part of Rightmove publishing? Validation errors? Manual reuploads? Time it takes?
We're building Rightmove integration based on real letting agent pain points. If there's a specific Rightmove workflow that frustrates you, we want to hear about it.
Get in touch: paul@letadmin.com
LetAdmin is in active development, built by letting agents for letting agents. Automatic Rightmove publishing is live at Phillip James (370+ properties) and has eliminated manual Rightmove uploads entirely—saving approximately 4-5 hours per month. If you're interested in seeing how automatic Rightmove publishing works for your agency, we'd love to hear from you.