Analysts value property website at £200 m as advisors called in.
Britain’s biggest property website Rightmove has moved a step closer to floating on the stock market by appointing financial and legal advisors and accountants. Analysts believe that the five year old company could be worth in excess of £200 m.
Close to 60% of all estate agents advertise their properties at rightmove.co.uk, with more than 600,000 properties listed at any one time. The company says it has a 78 per cent share of the property-website market, and that with 10 million visits a month it is Britain’s 14th most popular site.
The site is jointly owned by Countrywide, Halifax Bank of Scotland, estate agent Connells and Royal & Sun Alliance. Last year it recorded pre-tax profits of £2.3 m, and had a turnover of £9.2 m. The introduction of compulsory home sellers packs in 2007 is set to boost business for Rightmove and other property websites, as it will lead to an increase in services advertising online.
