Our speakers for the evening are Brian Watkins and Mark Whitley from The Paragon Group.
Paragon is the UK’s leading independent specialist provider of finance to residential property investors and professional landlords.
Paragon launched its first buy-to-let mortgages in 1995 and has focussed its business on professional landlords who have proven experience in purchasing and letting residential rental property. This focus is reflected in the excellent performance of the Group’s buy-to-let mortgage assets and its reputation as a leading voice in the sector. At the end of its last financial year, it had approximately £10 billion of assets under management and 40,000 landlord customers.
Paragon is proud to be a member of the Council of Mortgage Lenders, the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association, the Association of Residential Letting Agents lenders panel, the National Landlords Association & the Finance & Leasing Association. Paragon believes that the Private Rented Sector (PRS) has the potential to expand significantly over the next 10 years and could overtake social housing to become the UK’s second largest tenure. In order to do that, the UK needs a vibrant and healthy buy-to let market.
No doubt everyone is aware that, during the ‘credit crunch’, competition in the buy-to-let market and the availability of funding has reduced dramatically, not only in terms of products but also in relation to lending criteria. Paragon’s Brian Watkins (Regional Manager) & Mark Whitley (Regional Surveyor) will be highlighting where Paragon’s product range is able to satisfy the current gap in the market.
Brian Watkins (A.C.I.B.)
Brian has worked in the UK finance industry for more than 40 years, spending the first 20 years working for NatWest Bank. He has been the North East’s Regional Manager for Paragon for more than a decade, witnessing the substantial growth of the buy-to-let sector and latterly has had first hand experience of the difficulties experienced by all in the property market as a result of the recession.
Mark Whitley – BSc (Hons) Estate Management MRICS
After completing a Building Studies BTEC National Diploma, Mark starting working for Halifax Estate Agents aged 19 as a professional trainee. During this time he studied at Northumbria University on a day release basis while working for Halifax and obtained a degree in Estate Management and subsequently became a member of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors RICS. Mark has worked for Halifax, GA / Your Move, Gordon Brown Associates and e.surv. He joined Paragon in 2007 and is the ‘in-house’ Regional Surveyor for the North East (based in Chester-le-Street)
We also have a number of Specialist Exhibitors, not to mention our “In the Room Experts”.
Our exhibitors include:
Mortgage Brokers, Insurance Brokers, Conveyancing Solicitors, Overseas Experts, Training Providers, Lettings and property management agents and more.
So, if you would like to spend an evening networking with people who can help you to build your property portfolio or property business, then this event is for you.
The entrance fee for this event is £20, discounted to £15 if you pay on-line after registering.
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