LONDON (Alliance News) - Savills PLC on Friday said it has acquired a minority stake in YOPA Property Ltd after participating in a GBP16.0 million fundraising round to finance the roll out of YOPA's online hybrid estate agency.
Savills, a real estate advisory firm, said it has invested in YOPA, which launched its hybrid business model in January, to enable the roll out of the agency in the "high volume segment of the UK market". It didn't specify the size of its resulting stake in YOPA.
Hybrid estate agencies, such as YOPA and recently London-listed Purplebricks Group PLC, operate online, but also offer offline services such as local property experts.
"We have followed the rapid advance of the online 'hybrid' estate agency model over the last year. This investment broadens the group's access to the UK residential sector by enabling us to take an interest in the high volume segment of the market, comprising over one million transactions annually, to which Savills has had little exposure to date," said Chief Executive Jeremy Helsby.
"We have been consistently impressed by YOPA, whose technological edge, dedication to transparency and focus on the client at the heart of the sales process all resonate strongly with our core values and the way we do business," Helsby added.
By Hannah Boland; hannahboland@alliancenews.com; @Hannaheboland
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Savills (SVS)