After months of speculation, Boomin has finally revealed the date it is set to launch. The British challenger portal will go live on Friday the 2nd of April, a date which is not only Good Friday, it is also the start of a four-day holiday weekend in the UK and the beginning of the stamp-duty holiday extension period. Former Purple Bricks masterminds Kenny and Michael Bruce who are heading up Boomin and reportedly backing it with their own money, will be hoping that the day proves auspicious as British home hunters look to property portals in anticipation of lockdown restrictions being lifted in the country.
Accompanying the launch of the new property portal will be a “a sustained, entertaining and effective” advertising campaign with the portal pledging £50m to create “a household name in record time”.
Speaking ahead of the launch, Boomin CEO Michael Bruce said:
“We need agents to make a positive choice and work with us to reset the balance of power for them in the industry. The pips are already being squeezed by Rightmove and, if left unchecked and based on past experience the vast majority of agents will be paying 60 per cent more by 2024.”
Although there have been multiple PR wins for the fledgeling portal since its foundation at the start of 2020, including winning the backing of an influential agents’ guild and at least one anti-Purple Bricks industry figure, Boomin’s latest figures suggest it has a long way to go to be able to rival Rightmove’s listings coverage. According to a statement released today, Boomin has around 5,000 agent branches signed up to list while, according to its latest financial results published at the end of last month, Rightmove has 19,197 across sales, lettings and new-build.
