Foxtons soars on stock market debut Foxtons made a strong stock market debut on Friday, providing further evidence of a recovery in both share offerings and the residential property market in the UK. The estate agent said it had raised at least £390m from investors after its shares secured a top-of-the range price of 230p, giving the group an initial market capitalisation of at least £649m. The shares then rose 24 per cent to 285.5p in conditional trading in London on Friday morning. The price later dipped to 276p. The initial public offering market in the UK is recovering from the slump it suffered during the financial crisis. Flotations in London this year have included Partnership Assurance, which specialises in selling pension annuities to sick retirees; Esure, the motor insurer; Countrywide, the estate agency; and the housebuilder Crest Nicholson. The UK government also sold a £3.2bn chunk of its stake in Lloyds Banking Group this week through a placing of shares. The autumn is set to feature fresh share issues, with the government looking to sell a majority stake in Royal Mail, and Zoopla, an online property search service, also considering an IPO. Some investors snapped up shares in Foxtons because they thought it appeared the ideal time to buy into the UK housing market story. "We bought some shares as it is a very good time to buy stocks related to property," the head of equity at a UK institution said following the IPO. It is a good, healthy market with share prices rising and a government underpinning the market with various policies. We think now is definitely the time to get some property stocks on the portfolio. An equity portfolio manager at another UK investment group added: "We thought now was the time to buy. We may sell in 15 months to take some profit because we are uncertain how far these types of stocks can go, but at the moment the market is strong and we do not think it is a bubble as it is supported by economic recovery. If the economy continues to recover, then house prices will rise and so will property stocks. However, an investor at a European fund manager added a word of caution: "We are long-term investors and as such did not buy. We did think about it because the backdrop to the UK market is very good. How much more propitious could you want it with recovery and the government coming up with supportive policies? But we still think this market might become a bit toppy and we want shares for the long term. We want to hold them for five years or more. The housing market's resurgence has fuelled fears that continuing government support for buyers of new homes through the Help to Buy scheme could inflate a price bubble. The price of an average house in England rose 3.7 per cent in the 12 months to July 2013, driven by 9.7 per cent growth in London, according to official figures released this week. But George Osborne, chancellor, this week dismissed fears that the housing market was overheating. He said the economy was "turning a corner but . . . [had] a long way to go," citing data that show house prices outside London are barely rising. Foxtons said up to 17m more shares could be sold through an "overallotment option," which was brought to market by private equity investor BC Partners. The price range for the IPO had been 190p to 230p. BC Partners bought Foxtons from its founder, Jon Hunt, near the top of the last UK housing market boom in 2007 for about £360m. The private equity investor lost control of the business to lenders as Foxtons struggled amid a seizing-up of the housing market, but it regained control in 2012. A person close to BC suggested that Foxtons" strong stock market debut meant that it could get back as much as three times its total investment in the company.