Homely, which was founded in 2021, works with landlords, renters and financial institutions to help renters get onto the housing ladder by improving their financial position and opening up guidance, support and products which will allow them to buy.
The firm said it has secured pre-seed investment at a valuation of upwards of £10m from UST, a digital transformation business.
Homely said the funding would allow it to complete development of its tech platform and launch to the market. It said that it is working on partnerships with established brands in the market, including Aviva.
Its launch proposition will include opening up access to Homely Flexible Ownership products, which it said will bring together prospective homeowners with institutional capital. The platform is due to go live for borrowers by the end of this year.
The mortgage side of Homely is being headed up by Ellis Scott, who is also head mortgage and protection adviser at Scottsdale Lifetime Partners.
Lewis Scott, founder and CEO of Homely, said that this capital raise will allow Homely to help more people on their journey to home ownership.
He continued: “When it feels like buying a home, or qualifying for a mortgage, is moving further and further out of reach, Homely is committed to providing innovative solutions, underpinned by technology.
“As we expand and evolve moving forward, there will be further opportunities on the horizon for investors to work with us and be part of an important journey to help more people become home ready. We look forward to working closely with UST and driving forward better outcomes for the UK property market.”
Praveen Prabhakaran, chief delivery officer at UST, added: “We are pleased to join forces with Homely, a truly innovative brand that is using technology to offer modern solutions to longstanding problems within the UK property market. This is truly aligned to our core mission of transforming lives and we look forward to playing a significant role in enriching and enabling the homeownership journey.”
