Zoopla.co.uk launches new live online property auctions in UK
- Transformational marketing and revenue opportunity for UK estate agents -
21st January 2010
Zoopla.co.uk, the leading property website, has today launched the UK's most comprehensive live online property auction platform for buying and selling residential property, in partnership with Real Estate Disposition Corporation (REDC), the world's leading property auction firm.
The first online auction of approximately 150 homes will begin on February 11, ending on February 14. Thereafter live online auctions will take place regularly running four days at a time from Thursday afternoons to Sunday evenings when the auction closes and contracts are exchanged with the successful bidder.
Initially focused on repossessed properties, the service will also shortly be available to estate agents across the UK, providing them a new, fast and effective additional route to market for any of their property listings. Zoopla.co.uk will not charge its member agents anything for listing properties in its auctions and in addition to receiving their standard commission from the seller when the property is sold through the online auctions, agents will benefit from a further 0.25% of the purchase price as a referral fee which will be paid by Zoopla.co.uk.
The service will allow agents who advertise on Zoopla.co.uk to add any properties they choose into the new auction service, whilst continuing to market them and offer them for sale in the normal way. Properties may be added to the auction service up to 30 days prior to the auction commencing, during which period prospective buyers can arrange viewings via the agent and carry out due-diligence. Over the coming weeks, automated functionality will be introduced to allow Zoopla.co.uk member agents to seamlessly opt any of their properties into the auctions.
The innovative online auction platform, offered by Zoopla.co.uk, will provide agents with the ability to offer vendors a unique, additional route to market, which should result in maximising the sale price achieved and reducing the time on market, along with providing agents the opportunity to boost their commissions by approximately £500 per average transaction.
Agents and vendors will agree a reserve price before the property is entered into the online auction and successful bids will be binding on the buyer. Only properties represented by estate agents, lenders and developers will be permitted on the auction platform located at Zoopla.co.uk/auctions. Private sellers will not be able to participate.
Alex Chesterman, CEO of Zoopla.co.uk commented: "We see live online bidding as the future of property auctions and our innovative offering as one of the most exciting developments for estate agents in the UK for years. We are delighted to be partnering with REDC, the world's leading player in property auctions, and their expertise in online property auctions combined with the Zoopla.co.uk audience creates a unique and transformational opportunity for our agent members to maximise the price achieved, reduce the time on market and significantly increase their fee potential."
Greg Spiro, Executive Vice President International Division of REDC, added: "We are very excited to partner with Zoopla.co.uk, the UK's most innovative and fastest growing property website, to make live online property auctions a reality in the UK. We currently successfully sell approximately 1,000 homes, worth over £50 million each month via our online auctions in the US and we are looking to create the largest online property marketplace in the UK for buyers and sellers to transact openly and transparently."
- Ends -
For further information, please contact PR Team on pr@zoopla.co.uk or +44 (0)20 3873 8770.
Notes to editors
About REDC
Since its launch in 1990, REDC has helped tens of thousands of families and individuals purchase homes at affordable prices through its unique auction process, establishing the company as the global leader in real estate auction marketing. Since 2007, the company has sold more than £4 billion worth of property and in 2008 alone, auctioned 32,800 homes for more than £2 billion.
REDC's real estate auctions have gained tremendous appeal and popularity among buyers and sellers, even in today's difficult economic housing environment. In fact, thanks to REDC, the auction industry now plays a major role in property sales. REDC is a fully licensed real estate auctioneer, which has its headquarters in Irvine, California and offices in Dallas, New York and London.
About Zoopla.co.uk
Zoopla.co.uk is the UK's most comprehensive property website, focused on empowering consumers with the resources they need to make better-informed property decisions. We help our users make sense of the residential property market by combining property listings with market value data, local information and community tools.
Zoopla.co.uk was founded on the principles of transparency and efficiency and everything we do aims to make the market more effective for both property consumers and professionals alike. By combining free, instant value estimates for every UK home with sold prices, local market information and hundreds of thousands of properties available for sale and to rent, Zoopla.co.uk has rapidly become the ultimate destination for property consumers to search for property and do their market research. Our unique features allow users to gain an insight into the market and discover information they won't find anywhere else. And, as a result, we have become one of the most valued sources of both applicant and vendor leads for UK estate agents.
Launched in 2008, we are the fastest growing property website in the UK, now attracting over 12 million visits per month and are proud to have been awarded numerous accolades including being listed in the Top 10 UK Tech Companies (Guardian) and the Top 10 Most Innovative UK Companies (Smarta 100) as well as being voted the UK's Best Property Portal (Web User, Daily Mail Awards, Website of the Year).
Zoopla Limited is a privately held company with a highly experienced and proven management team, led by Founder and CEO, Alex Chesterman, and backed by well-respected angel investors and leading venture capital firms Atlas Venture (atlasventure.com) and Octopus Ventures (octopusventures.com).