New website plans to sell buy to let properties with tenants in place

A new website called Vesta has launched aiming to sell investment properties with tenants in place. 

The team behind the site describe it as “a new marketplace” which allows sellers to continue their rental revenue stream all the way to completion, with buyers being able to earn income from day one because there is no void period finding a tenant.

It also says that the figure of 40,000 tenant evictions per year should be reduced as landlords will no longer feel they should be selling empty properties. 

“Within the next five years, we strongly believe that Vesta will be the norm for the residential investment property sector, bringing together housebuilders, buy to let sellers, buyers and property investors” says Russell Gould, Vesta’s chief executive.

He says the arrival of the site is akin to the introduction of eBay and Amazon, creating a new set of opportunities in the private rental sector. 

“The unique Vesta online marketplace is designed to provide buyers and sellers with more choice and a faster, simpler and assured process while reducing the chances of gazumping.  Buyers can make offers or choose to buy at a guaranteed price with due diligence complete and tenants in place – a refreshing change to the current outdated system” he claims.

“So much of this sector is owned by small investors who buy and sell properties that are vacant and unfurnished. This is costly, time consuming and often a painful experience for tenants and landlords. With less rental and capital growth on the horizon, costly tax changes relating to both stamp duty and interest set offs and tougher rules around mortgage terms, there's an enormous potential in our trading platform to attract institutional investors, a government policy objective” he adds.

The team behind the site is led by FinTech entrepreneur Russell Gould and includes Bob Wigley, chairman of UK Finance and a board member of European Banking Federation. A non-executive director of the new venture is Chris Lacey, until recently Head of Residential Capital Markets of the world’s largest international property advisor, CBRE. 

Vesta says it is sourcing its properties through partnerships with some of the leading landlords, housebuilders and developers in the UK who have been attracted to Vesta’s unique features, cost-effective platform and streamlined processes. 

The business, which has already secured the marketing options over 177 tenanted properties, including some blocks, worth approximately £50m, has just successfully raised another round of funding to launch in the UK residential investment market.

Vesta will also offer fractional investment vehicles where property investors can invest into a fully managed, tenanted portfolio consisting typically of two or more properties. 

The minimum investment is £1,000 (plus fees) and dividends will be paid quarterly. This new and accessible way of investing in residential property provides property investors with a return on their investment but without the need to manage properties.