A BELFAST doctor who struggled to find affordable accommodation while working in London has packed away his stethoscope to launch a new property rental business in the "over-priced" English capital.
Matthew Beatty and business partner Luke Eastwood, also a Belfast graduate and professional barrister, are set to officially launch 'Spacehop' next month in what has been described as the new 'Airbnb for workspace'.
The fledgling company, which has already been accepted onto the influential fundraising website www.crowdcube.comand and given a £1 million valuation pre-trading, is seeking to raise £120,000 in return 10.71 per cent equity to fund a nationwide marketing campaign.
Former pupils of Friends School in Lisburn and later Queen's University, Belfast, the pair are initially showcasing 50 private properties in London which can be rented by independent workers - a sector currently growing at a rate of 3.5 per cent per annum.
"I had the idea when my girlfriend and I were finding it difficult to find reasonable, affordable property to rent in London," Matt explained.
"We were in a shared house in Brixton and a room was costing us £1,300 a month.
"Rent costs are extortionate and eat up a large proportion of people's salaries. It got me thinking that householders could get better value from their properties by putting them to efficient use when vacant."
Coming home after a hard day at the office to find people working in your home may not appeal to everyone, but Matt says the prospect of a significant second income is often enough to change minds.
"If people are out all day themselves and a spare room makes a suitable office for someone working on a freelance basis, it is ideal," he said.
"We have found householders very receptive to the idea, particularly since there will be an identification verification process involved and insurance to homeowners will also be provided.
"It will work a bit like Airbnb but instead of people going on holiday and renting out their entire home to tourists, they will be renting out a room as an office while they are still living there."
As part of their research Matt and Luke also spoke to self-employed freelance workers and discovered an urgent need for affordable office space in London.
"Independent workers in London can pay £350 to £400 a month for a single desk in a conventional office," Matt said.
"What Spacehop aims to do is make this more affordable as well as offering flexibility. For instance, we are thinking of a daily rate of £10 to £20 a day which will suit many small businesses."
Although beginning with 50 selected properties across the prime 'one and two' transport zones of central London, the company aspires to attract hundreds of householders onto its books by the end of the year.
"We are targeting 200 workers to begin with and hope to have 2,000 by the end of year two, with a growing property portfolio to match," Matt added.
And after London we will be launching the business in North America as well as in major European cities.
