Octopus Property has appointed Paula Purdy as business development manager (BDM) for the north of England.

She will report directly to D’mitri Zaprzala, Octopus Property’s head of sales.

Purdy (pictured) has over 17 years of residential, commercial, buy-to-let and bridging lending experience. She joins Octopus Property from Shawbrook Bank, where she was head of sales for residential mortgages.

She will be responsible for deepening existing relationships with introducers, alongside building new ones, in and around major north of England cities including Chester, Liverpool, Crewe and Warrington.

Since the start of 2018 Octopus Property has added 26 new employees, supporting the growth of the loan book to over £800m. Recent regional deals include four commercial property loans, totalling £35m, across Birmingham, Edinburgh, Derby and Manchester and a £20m development loan in Edinburgh.

Zaprzala said: “Paula has built a reputation as one of the industry’s most successful and respected sales managers and her appointment is a significant coup for Octopus Property, and a strong endorsement of our regional strategy.

“The roll out of our regional offering continues to gather pace, aligned with the growing demand from developers and investors outside of London and the South East.

“Paula’s knowledge and experience operating across the North of England will further enhance our proposition, as we look to replicate in the regions the success we have achieved over nearly 10 years.”

Purdy added: “Joining Octopus Property represents a hugely exciting challenge for me, at what is a pivotal time for the industry. Being able to offer a local service, along with the breadth of Octopus’ offering and the support of the wider Octopus Group, meant it was an easy decision and I look forward to helping the talented team meet its ambition of being the UK’s number one specialist property lender.”