Wayhome has raised £8 million in equity funding to grow the number of customers it helps buy their own home through gradual homeownership.

The hybrid part-buy part-rent model allows people to buy a home worth up to 10 times their household income with a 5% deposit and no mortgage or borrowing required. Its customers put in what they can afford and the funding partners, such as pension funds, put in the rest.

Adjusted shares

Each home is bought using a unique SPV (special purpose vehicle) that is listed on the title deeds and named on the AST as landlord. The customer and the funding partner are both owners of the SPV and their shares are adjusted every time the customer buys more of their home.

The customer is also named on the AST as a tenant; they then only pay rent on the part of the home they haven’t bought yet which means the more they buy, the less rent they pay. Once they’ve moved in, they’re free to paint walls and have pets. Wayhome are the managing agents and collect the rent each month on behalf of the funding member.

Greater demand

CEO Nigel Purves says: “Due to the way that the gradual homeownership model works, the rising interest rates seen since September’s controversial mini budget have delivered even greater demand for our product.”

He adds: “With the recent ending of the Help to Buy scheme there are now hundreds of thousands of would-be homeowners seeking alternative ways to access the property ladder. Our alternative is the best of all worlds as a part buy, part rent proposition that allows our customer to buy their ideal home, in their ideal location, today without waiting for years.”

The platform boasts that £100 million was used in customer property purchases in one year and plans to double this to £200 million per year within 12 months by forging partnerships with mortgage brokers and lenders.