02-08-2019
Director and Property Finance Consultant Wes found time to answer a few questions so that you can learn a little more about him and take advantage of his property development mortgage advice.
Award-winning mortgage advice from Fox Davidson
Director and Property Finance Consultant, Wesley Davidson
What drew you to working in mortgage advice and finance?
It found me really. I was temping at NatWest after finishing college and they offered to put me through my financial planning exams. I then moved into mortgages at Bristol & West and did further exams and have been working in finance ever since.
What are some of the most common enquiries you receive?
Lending for development finance in Bristol and the South West. Most clients want to borrow 100% development finance or put in as little as possible. Finding creative solutions to development finance is what I spend a lot of my time doing – it is satisfying work, securing Development mortgages. Bristol definitely provides us with varied enquiries, but I mainly focus on property development mortgage advice!
Can you tell us about a particularly challenging area, and how you helped the client?
I took a call late on a Friday night from a developer that had the bare minimum deposit (10% of total costs). Their current funder had pulled out last minute and they were about to lose a nice development site in Clifton. I worked over the weekend to produce a development appraisal and case for lending – I had terms agreed with a funder on the Monday morning. The case went on to complete and I have since done several more transactions with the clients.
What is a common misconception about your area of work?
There are lots of common misconceptions but my favourite one is that you can go on a search engine and find the best rate. It’s a little bit more complicated than that…
What area of mortgage and finance are you most passionate about?
Development finance. I like working with developers and I am currently working on development finance for sites in Bristol, Exeter and London. I like to visit the site, get to know their strengths and weaknesses and put together cases for lending – this helps me find the right lender and results in cost effective finance for my clients that is loaned on time, as promised.
Are there any industry trends or news that you would like to share?
As I am heavily involved in property development, I have seen first-hand the effects of Brexit on property developers. I can report that SME developers are still desperate for new sites, are still building and Brexit is not stopping them from getting on with developing property. If the sales are slow due to Brexit we are looking at retaining the property to let out with a view to selling in the future. I am also working on build-to-rent schemes, student accommodation schemes and co-living schemes. They will pick up traction so lenders will need to adjust criteria to lend on all types of developments if they want to be successful.
Fox Davidson are your go-to advisers for development finance advice. Bristol, London and Exeter based, we have a friendly team ready to answer any and all of your questions – you can rely on our property development mortgage advice so give us a call or email today.
