The story of Vuokraturva
Vuokraturva started off as a one-man company in the 1990s. It was run by 23-year-old Timo Metsola, now Chairman of Board of Vuokraturva and its subsidiaries.
The company was established in 1998 with the name Uudenmaan Takuuvälittäjät. The following year the name changed to Suomen Vuokraturva, which in 2006 became shortened to Vuokraturva.
The first years were difficult and there were many competitors. But right from the start Vuokraturva had something that set it apart from others: taking responsibility for rent being paid. In exchange for the brokerage fee, the landlord receives a guarantee for the entire first year of rent.
A brokerage law entered into force in 2001, causing big changes to the old operating models of large competitors. The agility of Vuokraturva and the guarantee received by landlords gradually changed the entire market. Vuokraturva eventually became market leader of the field in 2003. At the same time Timo Metsola, known as a candid speaker, established his position as a figurehead of the entire industry.
Over the next years Vuokraturva expanded its operations into real estate investment services, finding and purchasing good investment properties for clients as a turnkey service. Attitudes towards real estate investment changed. In November 2005, the front page of the main national newspaper's Sunday edition boasted a joint advertisment of Vuokraturva, the Central Union of Tenants and the Finnish Landlord Association, stating that a real estate investment is an investment into Finland. This was a completely new way of thinking. The landlord was not an exploiter but an important pillar of society.
Growth continued. 2007 saw establishment of the Asuntoturva property funds, winning a contract to manage properties for the European Chemicals Agency, and expansion into relocation services targeted at foreign experts.
The financial crisis in 2008 significantly increased demand for rental properties, and the intense stimulation of the economy through low interest rates in the following years led to a real estate investment boom. The business of the group expanded strongly.
In 2012 Vuokraturva, frustrated with high real estate agency fees, launched Myyntiturva, which offers the same brokerage service with an affordable fixed agency fee. The service has been a great success and changed the fee practices of the entire field, making fees more moderate.
Although the business of our group has grown and diversified, many of our customers have been loyal to us since the 90s. We have come a long way with these customers, and in many ways they form the foundation of our work. Timo Metsola, who started as the only employee, is still involved in the day to day life of the company and developing the group and new services.
With an almost paperless office and the industry’s best digital services, Vuokraturva in the 2020s is faster, safer, more responsible, and more environmentally friendly.