A decade ago, when the average price of a house was £159,799*, UK house prices plummeted by about 16 per cent – the biggest annual drop on record. A time of recession and depression, so, on the face of it, not the ideal time to launch a new property company.
But that’s exactly what visionary entrepreneurs Jonathan and Matthew Daines did – and today, their company, www.LettingaProperty.com, celebrates a milestone 10th anniversary.
Launched with just a handful of clients, the business has developed as a leader in the PropTech sector, focusing on providing an alternative lettings service to landlords and tenants in the private rental sector.
Today, operating from brand-new premises in Henley-in-Arden, it has over 22,000 landlords, almost 65,000 registered tenants and let more than 7,500 properties nationwide. Significant growth has enabled the company to increase its workforce to ten and to put it on course to double its staff by next year.
Jonathan, who is chief executive, said: “The big advantage to the way we operate is that without compromising on service, we can save people literally thousands of pounds compared to what they would have to pay in fees to a traditional letting agent.”
Not only can www.LettingaProperty.com invariably achieve better rental prices for its landlord clients, but, as a one-stop shop, it also takes care of the legal paperwork such as tenancy agreements, rent guarantee insurance and energy performance and gas safety certificates. Generally, online agents can charge a lower fee for a tenant-finding service and can offer landlords monthly packages or pay-as-you-go deals for additional services.
“We don’t have the huge overheads that traditional letting agents have and when we saw a niche in the market, we went ahead and created the business that we have now,” said Jonathan.
Matthew, who is chief operating officer, said: “By using the latest technology, sector knowledge and a cost-conscious administration we are able to offer landlords and tenants a great service – a service of which we are proud to say has won numerous industry awards.
“Our aim, when we set up, was to create an enterprise that saved clients time, money and hassle, and that’s just what we have achieved. We look forward to the next 10 years ahead.”