Housesimple rebrands to become Strike

20 july 2020

Today Housesimple becomes Strike.

• New digital-first estate agent sells homes for free across the North of England.

• Backed by Sir Charles Dunstone, Strike allows customers to sell their homes for free and from their phone with its new app

• Initial launch of Northern Powerhouse targets North of England, including Yorkshire, North West and Tyne Tees regions

• New research shows UK homeowners now want to sell digitally with online estate agents over high street agents

Strike, a new digital-first estate agent, launches today across the North of England. On a mission to make moving easy, Strike is the first agent to sell homes via a mobile app for free. The app is part of a full service offering helping buyers and sellers from listing to completion.

Strike is the evolution of Housesimple, one of the UK’s first online agents, which sold £1 billion worth of properties after it became the first agent to sell homes for free in 2019. From today, Housesimple has re-branded and expanded to form Strike. 

Backed by Sir Charles Dunstone, Strike is available to buyers and sellers across the North of England. Launching today with a combined ITV and Channel 4, radio and digital marketing campaign, Strike aims to become the biggest estate agent in Yorkshire, Granada, Tyne-Tees and Borders regions this year, and the biggest in the UK within 18 months. 

Sir Charles Dunstone, majority investor in Strike, said:

“We are so excited to be challenging the industry with Strike. We believe the way Strike blends people and technology to sell homes for free is a truly disruptive proposition that will lead to a better deal for customers.”

Sam Mitchell, chief executive officer at Strike, said:

“Strike is here to redefine the way we move. Estate agency hasn't changed for 200 years, we've been overcharged and underwhelmed. It’s time for a change. With Strike, we’re taking everything customers loved about Housesimple, making it more intuitive and adding a new mobile edge.”

Sam Mitchell, chief executive officer at Strike, said:

“As Housesimple, we set out to shake up the estate agent industry last year, becoming the first estate agent in the UK to sell homes for free. 

“Now it’s time to go even further. Estate agents are notoriously inflexible. Strike’s mission is to make moving easy. We offer our customers an intuitive, digital experience that’s safe, hassle-free and puts them in control. We have friendly experts supporting you at every step and of course, a jargon-free and straight-talking culture.”

Strike has created a simple, new way to buy and sell through an app and hub. The new service also allows customers to:

• Control the entire process from your phone

• Manage adverts before they go live directly from the app

• Manage adverts, viewings and offers from our new Strike Hub

• Accept, reject and propose new times for viewing requests

• Message buyers or sellers directly once they’ve booked a viewing or made an offer

Using Strike and avoiding estate agent fees could save sellers over £3,600 in commission, based on the national average house price*. In the last 12 months alone, Housesimple sellers in Yorkshire, Granada and Nottingham saved a total of £11.4 million in fees. 

Strike builds on the success of the free model, with the company tripling listings since going free. Strike’s expansion will see the creation of dozens of jobs in the North East as it expands to cover Newcastle, Sunderland, Middlesbrough and the Borders, while the company continues to recruit in its growing headquarters. 

ENDS

Strike up a conversation:

Kelly Hollidge / Anna Penson

Strike@citypress.co.uk

T: +44 (0)161 235 0330

M: +44 (0)7545211513

Notes to editors

Strike’s free service is now available in the following postcode areas:

BB, BD, BL, CA, CH1- 4, CH25 - 34, CH41 - 49, CH60 - 66, CH70, CH88, CH99, CW, DG, DH, DL, DN, FY, HD, HG, HU, HX, IM, L, LA, LN, LS, M, NE, NG18 - 24, NG34, OL, PE10 - 12, PE20 - 25, PR, S, SK, SR, ST7 - 8, SY13 - 14, TD, TS, WA, WF, WN, YO

Strike is the ESTAS Best Online Estate Agent of the Year 2020. 

Founded in 2007 as Housesimple, the online estate agent has helped over 32,000 people move home. The company has sold properties worth more than £3.3 billion.

Strike’s mission is to make moving easy.

*Based average house prices from Land Registry data