Former online agency founder seeks support for new property portal

The founder of an online agency that switched to the for sale-by-owner model has turned his attention to property portals.

Kae Travis founded online agent MoveSelf in 2017 but moved to direct listings in 2019.

The brand has since closed and its technology is being used on a new venture being launched by Travis called Investate, which lists property deals for investors.

He is also seeking agents to help back a new property portal to rival Rightmove, Zoopla and OnTheMarket.

Travis said he is tired of seeing agents “perpetually complaining” about ever-increasing portal fees yet doing absolutely nothing about it.

He said he wants to use his experience in technology to kickstart something that will produce a tangible outcome.

The portal, named Find Properties, will feature basic property listings so that prospects click-through to an agent’s website and users will be able to search for properties close to places such as schools rather than just a set area.

Travis also said the portal wouldn’t monetise agent data by reselling services before prospects contact the agent. By using basic property listings, agents can monetise their own data on direct point of contact, he said.

Travis said some of the finer details are unknown but he wants to establish demand for the project based on feedback and won’t go ahead if there is not enough support.  

He would then agree a vision with other agents, ensure that major property feed providers agree to integrate with the platform and then donate the website code to a new legal entity where agents are not and never will be majority controlled by shareholders.

Agents will then need to mutually fund the project.

Pricing hasn’t been decided yet but Travis told Estate Agent Today that the monthly fee that agents decide on will be based on how much it costs to develop and maintain the platform, market the portal, manage it and anything else. 

He said now is a good time to launch a new portal because the market is relatively quiet, and agents might have more time to focus on the feasibility of such an alternative.

Travis added: “I can understand why agents would be sceptical of any new portal offering. 

“Especially since the proposer of this portal offering is the founder of a former property sales platform which attempted to put more control into the hands of the homeowner.

“But Find Properties is different to previous attempts. Shareholders will not majority-own it. Agents will collectively be able to shape the development of the portal and manage the cost of subscription fees. And importantly, agents will regain control of their own data.”