Research

What research does

The research MCP server exposes UK property research through the Model Context Protocol. It connects AI assistants to Propbar’s property database, Police UK crime data, government school information, and UK Census 2021 demographics. The property database covers more than 30 million UK properties and includes sales history, listings, EPC information, and property attributes.

Its area tools support research into safety, nearby schools, and population characteristics. Its property tools return basic or expanded records, including historical information. The get_comparables tool is intended for valuation analysis and can return recent sales, properties sold subject to contract, and current listings.

How it works

The service is available at https://mcp.propbar.co.uk over Streamable HTTP using the MCP 2025-03-26 transport. Authentication uses OAuth 2.1 through Supabase. A client can connect through the remote URL and authenticate interactively, or send an OAuth bearer token when connecting programmatically.

A typical workflow starts with search_areas to obtain an area reference or search_properties to obtain a property ID. Area references can then be passed to crime, school, or demographic tools. Property IDs can be used with the basic and full property lookups. Most area tools also accept latitude and longitude directly.

For valuation research, get_comparables accepts coordinates and filters such as property type, bedroom count, search radius, and transaction type. Results can be compared by sale date, floor area, EPC rating, price per square metre, or price per square foot.

Setup and configuration

A Propbar account and either a Pro or Plus subscription are required. In Claude Desktop, add the remote server URL to the MCP server configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "propbar": {
      "url": "https://mcp.propbar.co.uk"
    }
  }
}

The first connection prompts for OAuth authentication. Programmatic clients can use the MCP SDK’s Streamable HTTP transport and include an access token in the Authorization header. OAuth protected-resource metadata is published at https://mcp.propbar.co.uk/.well-known/oauth-protected-resource.

Tools and capabilities

The research MCP server provides these tools:

• search_areas: find UK areas by name or postcode.
• search_properties: find properties by address.
• get_area_details: retrieve coordinates and area codes.
• get_crime_stats: return crime data and a safety rating.
• get_schools: find schools and their Ofsted ratings.
• get_demographics: retrieve census demographic data.
• get_property_basic: return basic property information.
• get_property_full: return a fuller property record with history.
• get_comparables: search comparable properties for valuation analysis.

Comparable searches expose filters covering property type, bedrooms, bathrooms, floor area, construction age, tenure, council tax band, current sale or rental pricing, historical transactions, market status, EPC ratings, lease years, service charges, ground rent, listings, publication dates, removals, and price changes.

Limitations and notes

The research MCP server is focused on UK data and requires an eligible paid Propbar subscription. Crime information comes from monthly Police UK data, school information comes from the government’s school information service, and demographic information is based on UK Census 2021 data. Comparable results support valuation research but do not by themselves establish a property’s final market value.

Clients must support the remote MCP connection and OAuth flow, or provide a bearer access token programmatically.