AUCKLAND, NZ: NZME, the owner of the New Zealand Herald and other media outlets, announced today that it has agreed to acquire the remaining 20 percent of the shares in OneRoof, its online property platform, for $2.1 million. The deal will bring NZME’s total shareholding in OneRoof to 100 percent.
NZME has exercised its option to buy the shares from its joint venture partner Hougarden.com Limited, a Chinese-language property website. The option, granted in 2018, has been exercised at a price of $2.1 million, payable in a series of instalments through until July 2026. The acquisition is expected to be completed on 18 August 2023.
Michael Boggs, NZME Chief Executive, said OneRoof is one of NZME’s key strategic pillars, and the acquisition of the remaining shares demonstrates NZME’s ongoing commitment to further growing the property platform.
“When NZME launched OneRoof.co.nz in 2018, it was immediately a huge disruptor in the real estate industry. Five years later it is a well known, respected, comprehensive property platform that is highly valued by agents and the wider real estate industry, as well as vendors, home buyers, investors and the general public.
“We are really pleased to have acquired the remaining shareholding of OneRoof, allowing us to have full control over growing the platform and becoming indispensable to real estate agents across the country. NZME views the property industry as an area of future growth and untapped potential, and as we start to see positive signs of NZ’s real estate industry recovering, we’re looking forward to continuing to grow our OneRoof offering well into the future,” he said.
“Hougarden has been a tremendous partner of OneRoof and NZME. We look forward to continuing our positive relationship with them as a service supplier to OneRoof in the years ahead,” Boggs added.
OneRoof offers a range of features and services for property seekers and sellers, including listings, valuations, market insights, mortgage calculators, and news and advice. The platform also integrates with NZME’s print and digital media channels, reaching millions of New Zealanders every week.