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Making second homes more environmentally friendly |
| July 2007 |
Innovative website yours2share goes live this week, with a free service to to help property owners make better use of their assets. yours2share believes that second homes can be more environmentally friendly and more acceptable to the local community if they are used more efficiently. Even if people can afford the country manor house, which they only use for occasional weekends, they often find this a lavish waste of resources that pricks their environmental, social and moral consciences. Second home owners face two dilemmas. Firstly people want to own property in areas of great natural beauty, but building in these areas can make them less beautiful and put extra strain on the environment. Secondly, people like to have property in vibrant communities with good bars, shops and restaurants. But if they leave a property idle for the majority of the time they are not contributing to local economy. In villages with many second home owners, shops and pubs often close down due to lack of trade. This isn't good for the owners of the second home or the community. So second home owners often feel guilty, but they still want a property that feels exclusively their own. One solution is fractional ownership: owning a share in a property with several other people. Most commercial schemes are highly exclusive and, if they offer the type of property the buyer is looking for, they are an ideal way to become a fractional owner. But only a few fractional schemes exist and most are for new developments so this doesn't suit everyone's taste and location requirements. However there is no reason why people can't get together themselves to buy property. People are often astonished at this idea, but boats and aircraft, frequently worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, have been shared for years. Boats and aircraft are inherently riskier to share than property: they can be flown or sailed away, but there are rarely problems with syndicates that have been set up properly. People have also been swapping properties for holidays for years without ever meeting the people who stay in their home. Swapping is now hugely successful. The second instinctive reaction is "why share when I can afford to buy outright?" A budget of £250,000 buys a great holiday home, but some people might prefer a quarter share of £1 million pound property. The key to sharing success is spending time ensuring that the partners are compatible. This is yours2share's objective: matching like-minded partners to share any property in any location. The website provides tools and advice to help potential partners find each other and negotiate a suitable contract. yours2share's founder Sophie Garrett says "It's not often that an environmentally and community-spirited choice enables greater luxury, but fractional ownership does just this". |
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| Notes to Editors:
About yours2share: yours2share is a new free website for private individuals and commercial agents to buy, sell or rent shares in valuable assets, or create new syndicates. This enables people to see all the options in one place, and allows them to take control and create bespoke sharing arrangements. yours2share is totally independent. It doesn't sell any of the valuable assets, finance or insurance, so it offers an objective view of the industry. Fractional ownership: means that more than one person owns the title of a property or other valuable asset. Unlike timeshare, the owners collectively own the property title rather than just the right to use it. There are already several major fractional ownership property schemes; particularly in the USA and a few in the UK. Most schemes are highly exclusive and, if they offer the type of property the buyer is looking for, they are an ideal way to become a fractional owner. Before the launch of yours2share, there were few options for most potential fractional buyers. Fractional renting: means renting a property for some of the time on a recurring basis, such as every third weekend or for three months of every year. It is growing in popularity for weekday only rentals, and for sharing second homes. For live-in landlords, it generates income from a spare room, without having to share their home at the weekends when they spend more time at home. For second home owners, it gives an income without the inconvenience of holiday letting or severe restrictions on the times they can use the property. For the tenant, it offers a pleasanter and often cheaper option than long distance commuting or staying in a hotel; or provides access to a regular base that feels more like their own, without the cost and commitment of purchasing the property themselves. Fractional ownership and fractional renting: can be applied to all kinds of valuable assets as well as property. yours2share is unusual in that it offers information and services on all types of sharing, for all kinds of valuable assets. Contact: Sophie Garrett on +44 (0)208 133 1234 |
