After Students Lose Thousands to Property Training Upsells, Samuel Leeds Offers a Fair Alternative

Across the UK, property training has become a booming industry. But for many students, what begins as a promise of financial freedom has ended in frustration, hidden costs, and unmet expectations. Now, property entrepreneur Samuel Leeds is challenging the status quo with a transparent and inclusive alternative.

Several former students of major training companies, including Progressive Property, Touchstone Education, and Assets for Life, have spoken out about high fees, limited mentoring, and repeated upsells.

Progressive Property’s entry-level mentorship costs around £15,000, but students report being encouraged to buy additional upsells costing £11,000 or more, while personal mentoring with founder Rob Moore can exceed £40,000. Touchstone Education has faced criticism from students for promoting property deals through its own company, which have gone badly, and Assets for Life has been accused of weak customer service and offering only one short mentoring call per month.

All three companies have defended their business models, but the concerns have fuelled growing mistrust of the property education sector.

Samuel Leeds, who built a £40 million portfolio from scratch, says his academy was designed to be the opposite.

“I was tired of hearing from people who’d spent tens of thousands elsewhere and still hadn’t had a single proper mentoring call,” Leeds says. “We give unlimited one-to-one support, direct access to real property millionaires, and everything’s included. There are no upsells or hidden tiers.”

The Samuel Leeds Academy, priced at £11,997, offers unlimited access to mentors, solicitors, accountants, surveyors, and project managers. Students can book as many sessions as needed, attend weekly masterminds, and have their property deals reviewed by professionals before investing.

According to independent research firm Survation, 86% of academy members completed at least one property deal within their first year, a result verified through student evidence. The academy also runs more than 40 inner-circle networking groups across the UK and monthly dinners in London, Birmingham, and Manchester.

Leeds says the academy’s pricing is completely transparent and published openly on his website, unlike many other providers whose costs are hidden until a sales call or free event.

He also claims to reinvest academy profits back into the student community. Through Samuel Leeds Finance, an £11 million fund of his own capital, Leeds loans money to academy members to help them purchase their first properties. The loans are structured through a Sharia-compliant model approved by financial and Islamic scholars.

“I pay over a million pounds a year to our mentors, lawyers, and accountants to give students world-class support,” he explains.“The academy fee just helps cover those costs. Any profit goes back into funding our students’ deals so they can get on the property ladder.”

Leeds, who has over half a million YouTube subscribers and tens of millions of monthly views, also makes much of his training content available for free online. He says this ensures people can learn the basics before investing in advanced mentoring.

“I give away most of what others would charge for,” he says. “The academy is for those who want direct guidance, accountability, and access to my professional team.”

Academy members can also use Leeds’ investor network through Deal Connect, which allows them to list and sell their property deals to verified investors. Many recover their entire academy fee within months.

While many education firms sell property deals to their students, Leeds’ model reverses the process, enabling students to sell deals and build independent income streams. His full price list, funding process, and mentoring structure are publicly available online.

“People are tired of secrecy,” he says. “When you’re transparent about what things cost, when you publish your prices and stand behind your results, trust follows. That’s how the industry should be.”