LendInvest has appointed its first business development manager (BDM) for northern England.

Damien Druce (pictured), a BDM with over 10 years’ experience in mortgage sales, will source deals in the Northern England property market and build LendInvest’s profile among his network of regional intermediaries.

He will be based in Greater Manchester, but will explore bridging and development loan opportunities anywhere between Staffordshire and the Scottish borders.

Druce initially expects to see most activity in towns within Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Yorkshire which have been significant beneficiaries of recent national infrastructure investment.

He joins from Castle Trust where he was national development manager and was previously he was head of distribution & development at Crystal Specialist Finance.

The appointment is LendInvest’s second official presence outside of London, following the recruitment of Peter McDermid as BDM for Scotland in July.

Matthew Tooth, chief commercial officer at LendInvest, said: “Damien is well known among mortgage brokers in the north of England, making him a fantastic addition to our team who can hit the ground running. Local expertise is critical for a regional BDM, and we are confident that Damien is the man to spearhead our increased profile in the north.”

Druce added: “I am delighted to be joining LendInvest at such an exciting time for the company. As confidence returns and some of the clouds of Brexit uncertainty clear, it is clear that there is a demand for fast and flexible bridging and development finance in the northern counties.”