Purplebricks’ head of letting operations joins Spicerhaart 

Spicerhaart has appointed the former head of letting operations at Purplebricks as its new property management area director for its branches in the Midlands and North West.

Emma Fagan will be responsible for helping to drive the company towards its overall goal of 50,000 occupied units by 2025.

Fagan said: “I wanted to join somewhere which has a high-performance culture and that values continuous improvement and has a family feel.”

Spicerhaart CEO Paul Smith previously told EYE that his firm has received a plethora of job applications in recent months from some of those working at the struggling online estate agency.

He said: “We have had significant interest from Purplebricks’ staff applying for the jobs we have on offer and have said we will welcome the best. Emma is certainly that.

“She is someone who has worked in the industry from the ground up, knows it inside out and will make a real difference to the Midlands and North West.

“Our high street brands are the present and future of the industry and we want top performers to come and join us.”

Spicerhaart letting MD, Satwant Basi, added: “It is a real coup to have Emma join us. I am sure she will do a great job helping us to meet our ambitious lettings targets, despite the market conditions.”

Charlotte Strang launches new buying agency

Charlotte Strang, a former associate director at Savills, has launched a new buying agency business, Strang & Co, which operates within the mid to upper property markets across Bristol, Bath, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.

Strang, who had over 15 years’ experience working in the property industry, began her career with Savills in London in 2008.

Specialising primarily in residential sales, Strang & Co act on behalf of vetted cash buyers who seek houses or flats, with budgets upwards of £600,000.

Within just weeks of launching, Strang says that her new firm has already secured several mandates from those seeking properties.

As a secondary service, Strang & Co also help time-poor tenants seek rental homes, which are predominantly off market.

Strang commented: “I am very excited to have launched my own buying agency. It’s something that I had thought about doing for a few years, having witnessed great demand for properties in Bristol, Bath and the surrounding areas. This was particularly apparent following the pandemic, where I recognised how challenging it can be for purchasers to acquire the right property and avoid costly mistakes.

“Finding a property to rent can also be a stressful, complex and all-consuming process too in the current market, so I wanted to offer a service where I can take the same great care in finding ideal homes for tenants, as I do for our clients that are looking to purchase.

“I have been thoroughly enjoying expanding my network and getting to know the local agents, and have already started to introduce them to my proceedable buyers and tenants.”

iamproperty appoints new chief technology officer 

iamproperty has appointed Neil Hope as its new chief technology officer.

With a career spanning over 20 years, Hope has vast experience in delivering technology transformation for large, market leading businesses, having previously worked at Parkdean Resorts, Sage and Formica.

iamproperty, which now has more than 480 staff across the UK, has seen growth in its partner agent network to over 5,000 estate agency branches across the UK.

As part of his role, Hope will also take on board responsibility for openview, with a view to trying to establish the platform as a major player in agency CRM category.

Hope said: “I’ve always been attracted to companies with a strong sense of purpose and a bold vision and iamproperty have both. A huge part of that vision is the continued commitment to delivering pioneering, quality, secure and scalable technology and I’m really looking forward to helping to shape that and to deliver on our strategy.

“The investment that is going into the innovation and technology teams to build on the businesses strong heritage as pioneers is setting us up for a very exciting future, and I’m delighted to be part of that.”

Ben Ridgway, iamproperty co-founder, added: “His [Hope’s] role will help to support the business as we prepare to enter a new era of product and service innovation and deliver our ecosystem vision and strategy.”