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FTSE-style property ranking launches with top 100

08 December 2010
Written by rosalind renshaw

A new FTSE-style property website for investors has launched. It treats properties as an investment, and rates them accordingly. 

Rankdesk will publish a weekly Top 100 list of high performance investment properties in central London.

It will take properties and their descriptions from estate agency partners who, it claims, are set to benefit by having these placed before a national and international audience.

The properties will be ranked on methodology including rent, proximity to tube stations, local tenancy demand, room sizes and overall yields. 

The site is now in testing mode, with launch partners Douglas & Gordon and Marsh & Parsons – both award-winning estate agents in London.

Currently, the site is appealing for more estate agents to back it. Their property listings will be free for at least one year, and there is also a free trial for investor subscribers. It is anticipated that agents will eventually be charged a nominal fee of, perhaps, £30 a month.

Rankdesk founder and LSE lecturer Savvas Verdis, who also has a PhD in architecture, says the business was established following his observation that unlike stocks or bonds, or even commercial property, residential property “lacks the necessary in depth investment data required by the global investor”.

Verdis said: “For the first time, investors can assess properties using a comprehensive analytical platform which will help them take more informed investment decisions. This platform gives estate agents exposure to a captive audience. There is flexibility within our model, so agents can preview our rankings a week in advance and remove properties if they wish to do so.” 

Agents who meet Rankdesk’s minimum property data requirements can list their properties for free in 2011, while premium services are available for those agents who distribute Rankdesk’s detailed five-page reports to their customers.

As soon as the estate agents are signed up, Rankdesk will automatically find the necessary data from the agent’s own website. Their property stock will be analysed on a weekly basis and appear on the Top 100 list, which will be published every Wednesday morning.

Ed Mead, of Douglas & Gordon, said: “Rankdesk will be an extremely useful tool for property investors, particularly those based overseas, and it will only improve over time. It offers analysis based on comprehensive detail and clever methodology. There’s simply nothing else like it, so we are delighted to be involved.”

Peter Rollings, managing director of Marsh & Parsons, said: “Rankdesk provides comprehensive insight to buyers looking to invest in London property. This provides us exposure to both domestic and international investors alike. With inquiries from international investors to our own international desk increasing, we expect our overseas purchasers, who require pertinent information in order to make an informed decision, to make full use of rankdesk.”
 
www.rankdesk.com

Comments

  • icon

    An interesting concept, only time will tell if it used to a large extent - it relies on a big take up.

    • 28 December 2010 14:55 PM
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    I disagree - without viewing the property the 'analysts' have no way of truly knowing the condition and aspect of the property - two major factors in determining the rental value. Estate agent particulars are advertisement materials not a factual analysis of the property.

    • 13 December 2010 10:08 AM
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    I have just spent 20 minutes reading their methodology. They have definetely found a niche between an Automatic Valuation System (fully computerised) and a formal Survey, which relies on a Surveyor's site visit. It appears that Rank-Desk analysts base their assessment online by looking at the property particulars of estate agents. So it's a manual exercise where someone studies the floorplan, location, aspects etc. of the property and compares these to other properties in the area to determine rental values etc.

    THREE observations:

    1. I will definetely use them as a point of origin to point me to good investment property. I typically spend my mornings on a calculator trying to differentiate good from bad investments.

    2. They claim that they can launch this in New York. I would be sceptical because NYC has no Property Misdescriptions Act, and these guys rely on true information provided by estate agents.

    3. They have two services: One is weekly rankings. The other is on demand analysis reports of any central London property (report delivered within 24 hours). I think the first is limited because only a few agents are signed up. The second is more relevant as any propery in central London can be analysed (at least that's the claim)

    One to watch (well that's if you are an investor)

    • 12 December 2010 18:31 PM
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    I see they don't plan to charge agents for 2011. Looks like a loss leader and suspect they will charge after that.
    Also how could anyone treat their reports seriously when they don't even 'visit' the property? They don't take the condition of the property or its aspect into account !
    Clever statisticians they may be - but not really a valid tool for serious property investors who at least would visit the property before forming their view on it.
    .. Next !

    • 11 December 2010 23:10 PM
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    Thank you EA Today! What a find!....as a search agent this product will save me loads of time in boring calculations :) Question is can we trust rank-Desko data? Only time will tell!

    • 10 December 2010 18:50 PM
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    Interesting concept. Went to rankdesk.com and their model is that agents will list properties for free. So I guess they will only charge end users. Not sure if their TOP100 will work without a lot of agents but their Analyse a Property service is VERY cool. Hope they survive!

    • 10 December 2010 15:00 PM
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    Destined to be another 1 minute wonder!

    Why?
    Because how can it be taken seriously unless they have 'every estate agent' in London using it (and paying for it).
    Here's how their marketing pitch will go.
    Join us and get your properties into the top 100 and make them more attractive to buyers and investors. But by only the estate agents who pay for it and submitting their 'chosen' properties into it, then the Top 100 will be nothing more than a list of 'featured paid for listings!
    What a waste of time.

    • 10 December 2010 12:25 PM
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    Great great idea! but it's aimed at central london property only.

    • 08 December 2010 14:33 PM
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    "Currently, the site is appealing for more estate agents to back it" Dream on.

    • 08 December 2010 10:50 AM
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    Hilarious. Wonderful comic timing. Like selling ice lollies in Scotland right now.

    • 08 December 2010 09:49 AM
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