ourselves together

OFFERING ALTERNATIVE FINANCE

I started working for a housebuilder after graduating from UCL and my job was to look for sites for development, make sure the numbers stacked up and also ensure that planning was in place. We would find a lot of similar sites but the developer could not find mainstream finance. That’s when I spotted a gap in the market for small and medium-sized housebuilders in the UK who aren’t able to get access to finance for development.

DIRE NEED FOR NEW HOMES Later on, I also worked in the planning department at Southwark Local Authority, where I quickly learned how the council’s bigger sites are sold to house builders and how planning permission is granted.

We need to build a minimum of 300,000 new homes per year in England to meet rising demand, yet in the year to June 2019 we built just 170,000. This has led to an increase in housing prices and a quarter of adults under the age of 35 are still living in their childhood bedroom, making the prospect of getting on the property ladder seem near to impossible for a lot of young people. 27% of 20-34-year-olds are still at home. (BBC Briefing, 2020) On the other side of the market, inflation is 1.8% which means we’re losing money in savings as we speak. I was fed up with my money sitting in the bank and not earning enough interest*. Stocks and shares are an option, but they’re volatile. Certain laws and restrictions have made buy-to-let a less attractive investment option in the current climate.

SPOTTING A GAP IN THE MARKET I saw a gap in the market that enabled SME housebuilders to gain access to the finance they need, whilst also enabling retail investors to target higher returns - which is why I started FutureBricks.

With the backing of 20 angel investors, I managed to raise £1 million in equity and launched FutureBricks in 2018. I started my business from scratch, building the technology, core team and a strong board of industry experts. I have since achieved a £1.4 million loan book across 10 diverse projects. So far, we have given exit to 2 projects offering 12% and 18% in returns and have 1000 active lenders in our community.

OFFERING ALTERNATIVE FINANCE In a nutshell, FutureBricks is an online peer to peer lending platform for small and medium-sized house builders who can’t get access to mainstream finance due to a number of restrictions from banks since

2008 financial crisis. At the same time, we are making this exclusive industry of investing in property accessible to all because the minimum investment starts at just £500, offering up to 12% gross interest per annum. Our projects are expertly chosen by a team of experienced property professionals and a scrupulous underwriting team. Developments funded to date include Prime Central London properties in Camberwell, Southfields and Hayes to name a few.

My vision for the next 3.5 years is to achieve a £100 million loan book. There are so many house builders who don’t get access to mainstream finance, and retail customers don’t get access to good deals. FutureBricks is here to change that.

“My vision for the next 3.5 years is to achieve a £100 million loan book. There are so many house builders who don’t get access to mainstream finance, and retail customers don’t get access to good deals. FutureBricks is here to change that.”

*Please note that money held in a savings account is protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) whilst P2P does not have FSCS protection and investors’ capital is at risk.*

The Brickwork Group Ltd trading as Futurebricks is an Appointed Representative of Resolution Compliance Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN. 574048).

WORDS: ARYA TAWARE, FOUNDER & MD, FUTUREBRICKS. FUTUREBRICKS IS A ONE-STOP PLATFORM FOR SME HOUSE BUILDERS IN THE UK.