Millionaire is giving away a £120,000 three-bedroom fully-furnished apartment for FREE
Marco Robinson, 48, is looking for a family to move into the top-floor flat in Preston
A MILLIONAIRE who spent his childhood sleeping on park benches is giving away a free flat.
Marco Robinson, 48, is offering up the £120,000 fully-furnished and mortgage-free three-bedroom apartment to a suitable individual or family.
The lucky winner will be selected over the course of the next six weeks through a documentary Marco is making alongside Channel 4.
Marco said he spent his childhood sleeping on park benches with his mum before he was hauled out of poverty.
He now owns 150 properties around the world and wants to give away a top-floor flat in Preston, Lancashire - and will even stump up cash for the council tax bill for as long as necessary.
Marco, a dad-of-two, said: "I asked for help and I got it from unlikely people. They helped me believe in myself.
"It's been hard work, but I've been successful in business and made a lot of money.
"I started investing profits into property and learned where were the best places to buy.
"Now I want to give something back - to give someone a lucky break like I was given when I was starting out, so that's why I'm giving away one of my properties.
"Finding people as candidates is going to be easy, there's so many. The difficulty will be choosing just one of so many.
"I've been meeting the local community and homeless groups, speaking to shop owners and trying to learn about the situation locally.
"There are massive issues with affordability - people just can't afford the deposit anymore.
"People over 30 are still living with their parents and so many more people are now homeless.
"Twenty or thirty years ago it was easy to get a house, but since then the salaries have stayed the same but property prices have rocketed.
"For a £150,000 house in Preston - and that's not going to be a massive house - that means a deposit of £40,000 and if you're on the minimum wage, how long is it going to take you to save that? A lot of people will never be able to.
He added: "The people who I want to see live in this flat are people who need a home, they need a sanctuary and some security, and that will make them feel significant again.
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"They need to be in desperate need with nobody helping them get out of the vicious cycle.
"I'm very confident from then, very quickly, people will be able to turn their lives around."
Marco said he believes he will have a "gut feeling" about who the lucky new resident of his flat will be when he meets them.
He said: "I think I'll just know, because I've been there myself.
"I want someone who is willing to make the effort, someone who is hard-working but who has found themselves in deep problems, not someone who's just going to abuse this situation.
"I'm not just going to disappear either, I'll help them acquire an income if necessary and I'll pay the council tax as long as they need the support.
"It's not just about the flat, it's about a life.
"I hope too that I can inspire other people like me - people richer than me - to look at doing something similar.
"People need a break and the council can't give you that any more.
"Council houses have disappeared, Help to Buy is hard to get and we need to believe in people again."
Those who fancy their chances of getting their hands on Marco's flat should be over 18 and are asked to explain in no more than two paragraphs why they should be considered.
The deadline for applications is midnight on Thursday 2 February 2017.
Visit, www.myfreeproperty.com