Specialist lender West One Loans has opened a new office in Manchester, as it steps its regional expansion in order to support brokers and borrowers across the North of England.
The move is part of the firm’s ongoing national growth strategy and follows sustained demand for specialist finance products in the region. With its headquarters in Watford, West One’s Manchester presence becomes its second permanent office and will house underwriting, operations staff and regional business development managers. The space will be led by recently appointed regional director Duncan Abraham.
The new base is located in central Manchester, adjacent to Manchester Piccadilly station, providing convenient access for both new hires and visiting brokers. According to the lender, the location was chosen specifically to allow for better face-to-face service delivery in a market that continues to favour proximity and direct engagement.
Abraham said: “I look forward to playing an integral role in this next phase of West One’s growth. I have seen first-hand how demand has grown in the region over the past few years. This new office will help us deliver the capacity to meet that demand while signalling our intent to brokers and borrowers that rely on proximity to get deals done.”
The new site is also intended to help scale the firm’s operations more broadly as it seeks to grow its share of the UK’s specialist lending market. Stephen Hogg, chief operating officer at West One, said the expansion is a “natural evolution” for the business.
“With nearly 300 staff in the wider Enra group of companies it is important for us to build additional operating capacity beyond our Watford base to power our continued growth plans. The economic strength, and strong appetite for credit, in the north makes it a key target market for us as we look to grow our business further.
“The new office will give us a firm foundation from which to deliver our market-leading service proposition and our comprehensive range of lending products to our broker partners and their clients in the north of the country,” he said.
Pictured (L-R): Paul Hughes, Team Manager; Haley McPherson, Group Marketing Director; Marie Grundy, Managing Director of Residential Mortgages and Second Charges; Rick Davey, Regional Account Manager: BTL and Bridging Sales; Duncan Abraham, Regional Director; Stephen Hogg, Chief Operating Officer.
