Proptech
News focusing on new technological solutions which create efficiencies and cost-savings for estate and letting agents and the wider residential property industry.
-
Leading payments platform says it is “hard to believe” rent isn’t recorded by credit agencies
Rental payments platform PayProp has called for rental histories to be added to tenants’ credit scores which is says will help re-ignite the first-time buyer property market. The company, which started in South Africa but now has a substantial presence in the UK and elsewhere, says enabling tenants to use their regular rent payments to improve their credit scores would help more first time buyers get on to the property ladder, and also incentivise tenants not to pay their rent late. “Many tenants have been paying rent on time for years, if not decades. The fact that this does not carry the same weight as a mortgage payment is hard to believe,” says Neil Cobbold, CEO of PayProp in the UK (pictured, below). “Thanks to the rapid growth of the private rental sector, more tenants are paying higher rents. Taking cognisance of rent payments would therefore make perfect sense, encouraging the next generation of property buyers. “Recording and counting rent payments towards credit scores is a modern phenomenon and therefore it needs a modern solution,” Credit reference agencies and lenders in the UK are not required to take rental payment into account when ‘scoring’ borrowers, and only Experian does so…
Read More » -
2018: make or break for PropTech
The next twelve months are likely to be a tipping point for technology in the housing market, say the leading PropTech figures.
Read More » -
New app will ‘revolutionise’ tenant application process
A new digital product, Vouch, has been created to ‘revolutionise the tenant application process for letting agents’.
Read More » -
First ever Airbnb-branded apartment block to launch
The march of Airbnb towards being a fully-fledged property company took a step further towards reality this week after it was revealed that the home-sharing platform is to spend $200 million launching a series of Airbnb apartment blocks. The initial development, which is due to open before the end of March next year, will be the first Airbnb-branded building in the world and is to be in Kissimmee, Florida. Within the building, tenants will be encouraged to rent out their homes via the home-sharing website, and in return receive aparthotel-style services to help manage each Airbnb booking. The $20m, 423-apartment building – which is under construction – is Airbnb’s attempt to get around the problems it has faced when, around the world and particularly in the UK, apartment block owners and tenants have railed against the downsides of home sharing. Airbnb apartment This includes helping push up local rents by eating up the long-term rental market, contravening local property laws, undermining local communities and that the people who rent out Airbnb apartments tend to be noisy and transient holiday makers. The Kissimmee apartment block is owned by Airbnb’s partner in the venture, the Newgard Development Group, while the concept is…
Read More » -
Settled rebrands
Settled, the software platform which connects every step in the home moving journey is rolling out a brand new logo, website and visual identity...
Read More » -
KeyNest gets technical in key management
London estate agency LiFE Residential has launched LiFE Ventures, a new investment arm of the business to support early stage start-ups in the property sector.
Read More » -
Buy a bit of a house – with Bitcoin
Unlocking the money held in the value of your home is not new, schemes abound across the UK, but here’s something completely different: buying a bit of a house with Bitcoin.
Read More » -
HSBC: 93% UK buyers’ homesearch is online
UK house hunters are the global leaders in online property research according to an HSBC study which found that 93 per cent of UK homebuyers use online channels for their property search, ahead of the global average of 83 per cent.
Read More » -
Fixflo launches Letting Fees Ban Calculator
Fixflo has released its brand new free tool, the Letting Fees Ban Calculator, which is now available to use online.
Read More » -
Building better engagement
Giosg, which helps clients do better business by engaging more successfully with online visitors, has analysed data from 2.8 million visitors to UK property companies’ websites.
Read More »
