Specialist lender West One has doubled its salesforce, in a bid to expand its national coverage selling bridging loans as well as building up second charge mortgages and future new lending streams
The property finance lender has added two new business development managers, as well as creating a new broker sales manager role and appointing two new people to its broker support team.
The business lent £62m in 2017, and said it had taken market share at a time when bridging loan growth was moderate, resulting in increased market share.
Marie Grundy, sales manager at West One, said: “This strengthening of our sales organisation is a critical component of our growth strategy and ensures that we not only have nationwide coverage of our key broker partners, but also the back office bench-strength to give them the service they expect from an agile business like West One."
They won’t be the cheapest on the market, but I think they will do some of the more unusual case and that is good too.Mike RichardsMike Richards, director and mortgage adviser at Mortgage Concept Associates, said that his company uses West One for bridging loans, and welcomed the move into second charge lending.
He said: “They won’t be the cheapest on the market, but I think they will do some of the more unusual case and that is good too.”
He added that second charge mortgages were developing fast, and becoming a far more attractive option for many.
“There has been a rate war, and rates are much lower. They are always going to be higher than a remortgage, but in cases where a borrower is looking to refinance it may be a better bet for a short term in some cases rather than a complete remortgage.
"They are often a lot more generous on affordability as well.”
rosie.murray-west@ft.com
