Investors in the UK will now find it easier to buy and sell shares in individual houses as the first property exchange in the country was launched today. Opromark wants to make the buy-to-let market more accessible to people and hence has allowed the minimum investment in property to start at just £1.
The working of the exchange will almost be the same as that of the stock exchange with users being able to buy up 100 percent shares in any property that is sold through the exchange. A letting company will then rent out the property and investors will split the rental income after the deduction of the fees. This will be done on the basis of the proportion of the property they own. If the holders want to end their investment, they will only have to re-sell their shares through the property exchange. They can sell their shares at a higher price than they brought them if it is deemed that the property has risen in value during their holding period. At the moment, 18 properties available through the exchange and the group say that this number will only increase in the coming months. At present only residential properties in the UK are on offer though the firm says that commercial properties and overseas residential properties would soon be added to the exchange.
Commenting on the exchange, Chief Executive Stephen Kenny said, “The benefits of investing in the buy to let market have been well documented over recent years and yet this is an asset class that remains inaccessible to most. Opromark opens up the buy-to-let market to a broader range of investors, including those struggling to get on the housing ladder, by making the minimum investment £1 and ensuring that investors can diversify their investment cost effectively across a range of residential properties.”
Whenever a new property is put up at the exchange, people can check out its details, including an independent survey, valuation and searches, and analyze the performance of comparable properties before deciding whether to invest in it. Stamp duty will be levied on any properties bought through the exchange. The membership of the exchange is free but Opromark will charge trading fee of 3% for investments of up to £3,000 to 0.5% for ones over £250,000.
For more details log on to www.opromark.com
Posted
on : Fri, 17 Jun 2005 15:25 GMT | Loans News
By : Rob Davis
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