Savills has acquired a minority stake in online real estate advisory company YOPA Property.
Savills acquired a stake through its Grosvenor Hill Ventures by participating in a £16m equity fundraising that YOPA launched to roll out its hybrid estate agency.
YOPA was originally launched in 2014 but became an online hybrid in January this year. It will continue to operate independently under its existing brand.
Jeremy Helsby, group chief executive of Savills, said: “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.
“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.”
