Click & Collect! PropTech firm offers online buy, refurb and let service

A PropTech start-up says its service allows investors from anywhere in the world to buy property in the UK which can then be refurbished and let out. 

Revive To Rent is the name of the investment service developed by Manchester-based Dot Residential, which began trading only in April.

It says it uncovers potential investment properties in different UK cities, identifies what needs to be done to them to add value and then uses an in-house project management team which “re-imagines each property, conducting a detailed inspection before developing an interior design and build spec to enhance both capital value and rental income potential; all completed within 72 hours.”

The PropTech firm’s package then sets out a business plan for the property including pre-approved financing, fixed-price refurbishment, legal conveyancing and turnkey lettings and management. 

It says its average fix time for clients is four weeks and claims it offers to deliver investors a 25 to 50 per cent initial return on equity from its refurbishment work, with ongoing leveraged net yields of between seven and 10 per cent once the property is tenanted. 

It insists that because it is online, “investors can secure an opportunity in minutes, contributing a minimum 25 per cent deposit, with Dot advancing a 75 per cent … loan to cover the balance and refurbishment costs. Dot pre-approves all listed properties for finance as part of its feasibility and underwriting process so investors can act quickly to snap up the best opportunities.”

According to Dot Residential founder Gray Stern: “One of our Revive to Rent case studies has seen a £16,500 valuation uplift for the investor in a two-week time-frame, who has subsequently received an offer that will crystallise a £22,000 profit.”

Dot says it focuses on secondary cities outside of south east England where prices are lower but rental yields and capital growth are stronger.

It cites Manchester, Birmingham, and Leeds as examples where a key driver of this growth is a generational shift of young adults staying in or returning to these cities in their late 20s.