Awards for Morpeth team

Rook Matthews Sayer, in Morpeth, have just won The British Property Award for the North East Region and their team look as if they couldn’t be happier.

Cheryl, Morpeth’s Branch Manager says “We’re absolutely delighted to have won not only the ‘Best Estate Agent in Morpeth’ award but also the ‘Best Estate Agent in The North East’ regional award for 2021.

“The team has worked incredibly hard over the last year in an extremely challenging market, which saw house prices rocket and buyer demand rise to an all-time high!

“I’m delighted that their hard work and dedication has been rewarded by such a prestigious award, being recognised in such a way makes us feel extremely proud and provides a great sense of accomplishment.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers and of course the whole Morpeth team”.

New West Country head of rural sales 

Knight Frank has appointed David Lewis as head of rural sales for Devon and West Somerset.

Lewis’ career in residential property began as a sales negotiator in prime central London, across markets including Westminster, Belgravia, and Kensington & Chelsea.

After a sucessful six years, Lewis relocated to the Teign Valley where he has spent the last fifteen years. Most recently he was an Associate Director at Jackson-Stops where he handled the sales of a diverse range of rural properties across Devon.

As an Associate based in Knight Frank Exeter’s office, his focus will be the sale of farms and estates across Devon and West Somerset.

Lender expands into Scotland

Specialist Finance Centre (SFC), the second charge and specialist finance packager, has announced the launch of its proposition into Scotland.

SFC Scotland will be based in Glasgow and is headed up by Allan Smith. Smith has extensive experience in the development and bridging finance sectors having previously worked as a broker and a lender. He joins from Money Sense where he was Head of Specialist Finance.

SFC Scotland’s core product offering is development and bridging finance and it will also be able to offer all Specialist Finance Centre products from first and second charges, commercial and buy-to-let, invoice and asset finance, providing clients and introducers with a truly ‘one stop shop’ in Scotland.

New buy-to-let lender

Recognise Bank has entered the buy-to-let market with a new product designed for professional landlords and investors with portfolios of at least four properties. It is the Bank’s first new lending product since receiving its full authorisation and the lifting of deposit restrictions in September 2021.

With rates from 3.49%, borrowers can choose a five-year fixed-rate deal or a variable deal linked to the Bank of England Base Rate. With a maximum LTV of 75%, loans are available from £100k up to £5 million on either new acquisitions or for refinancing existing portfolios of four properties or more.

Repayment and interest-only payment options are available for terms of up to 10 years. The loans can be used for single-let residential houses or blocks of flats let on an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) basis, and are open to UK-based individuals, partnerships, Limited Companies and LLPs that meet Recognise Bank’s lending and affordability criteria.

By focusing on borrowers who already have a significant property portfolio, and by offering a range of flexible options, Recognise Bank says it aims to serve reputable and professional landlords, supporting the availability of quality rental properties in the UK.