Jonathan Morgan joins Zenko Properties as a partner

Jonathan Morgan, the former MD of Morgans, a well-known city living agency in Leeds, for 22 years, has joined Zenko Properties as a partner.

Morgan spent 22 years building Morgans, which was part of the urban revolution in the city and provided sales, lettings and property management services to individual landlords, private developers, housing associations, banks and major institutions. The company managed a portfolio of 1,500 largely privately owned residential properties.

In July 2019, he sold his shares in the business to the Linley and Simpson Group, and finally left the business in July 2022. He has remained in touch with the residential property industry, and will now work with Zenko Properties in Leeds, supporting Tobias Duczenko in growing the business, which currently manages around 700 rental properties.

Morgan said: “City living has been a major part of my life for more than a quarter of a century and after a short break, I realised that I’m not done with it yet.

“Zenko is a business that I’ve admired for a long time and it has quickly established a strong foothold in the market, with a growing rentals portfolio and a strong sales division.”

Duczenko added: “He’s [Morgan] very well-known in the industry and is still synonymous with the most successful residential agency the city centre has ever seen.”

Lee Koffman joins Robert Irving Burns from Sotheby’s 

Lee Koffman has left his role as head of North West London at UK Sotheby’s International Realty after five years to join Robert Irving Burns as a director and head of residential sales.

Koffman, who featured on the Channel 4 series Britain’s Most Expensive Houses, has 20 years’ experience in the prime and super prime residential London markets. Prior to his time at Sotheby’s where he transacted £700m of property sales, Koffman spent more than 14 years at Aston Chase.

Robert Irving Burns, based in London’s West End, recently also welcomed Paul ‘PK’ Kemsley as a 50% partner in the business, and is currently featured on Channel 4’s Selling Super Houses show.

Koffman said: “RIB is a highly dynamic and evolving business with a strong existing client base and the infrastructure in place to ensure it is primed and ready to grow.

“It’s an incredibly exciting time to be joining the company, and I’m really looking forward to working alongside Antony, PK and the team to help take the agency to new heights”.

Antony Antoniou, CEO of Robert Irving Burns, added: “Lee brings a wealth of experience across the super-prime residential markets, with excellent contacts and a deep understanding of the sector.

“We have invested significantly in our prime residential division in recent years, and we see this appointment as the next step in our growth.”

The Hill Group promotes Dan Haines to land director

The Hill Group has promoted Dan Haines to land director to oversee the firm’s residential land portfolio and further enhance the company’s regional expansion and ambitious growth plans.

With 20 years of real estate experience, Haines joined Hill in May 2022 as head of land, spearheading Hill’s growth and expansion in the company’s South West region. During this time, he has been involved in several major projects, including the West Car Park site at Bristol Zoo and Raleigh Road in Southville. In addition to leading a significant land acquisition in Chipping Sodbury, he has also played a pivotal role in leading bids for the Western region.

In his new role, Haines will build on the legacy and vision set by his predecessor, Keith Parrett, supporting Hill to realise its strategic five-year business plan and oversee land acquisitions across all areas of the residential business to expand the company’s portfolio. His principal focus will be on identifying projects that can achieve planning approval and commence construction within three years. Targeted developments will also align with the company’s sustainability objectives, which include a 20% biodiversity net gain target across all developments.

Andy Hill, group chief executive of The Hill Group, commented: “Promoting Dan to this important role demonstrates the great depth of talent we have within the organisation. He brings a wealth of experience as well as an understanding of our culture and strategic vision. Dan has been instrumental in our expansion within the South West region, and I look forward to him building on these achievements at a group-wide level.”

Prior to joining Hill, Haines spent ten years with Savills’ Bristol land department as an associate director. He then joined Sovereign, where he served as commercial development director, followed by Keepmoat, where he was promoted to regional MD and regional director across the South West and West Midlands regions.