FirstPort creates director role for BTR division

Richards first joined FirstPort in July 2018.

FirstPort creates director role for BTR division

Residential property manager FirstPort has appointed Lee Richards as director of Build to Rent (BTR).

Richards first joined FirstPort in July 2018 as head of property standards and takes up his new appointment with immediate effect.

Managing properties that investors are building specifically to rent (BTR) is emerging as the sector’s fastest growing commercial opportunity in 2020.

Martin King, director of business development at FirstPort, said: “There are currently some 40,000 occupiers of homes that were specifically built to rent in the UK.

“But there are another 100,000 currently under construction or in the planning pipeline.

"Lee’s appointment is part of our strategy to be the property manager of choice for these large scale institutional investments.”

Richards added: “There are numerous well documented barriers to new property ownership currently in the UK.

"Low mortgage multiples available for average earners, deposit sizes required, and rising property prices have all contributed to the rise in the age of first-time buyers to 33 in the UK, and 37 in London.

“The demand for good quality rental property has never been greater as the private rental sector expands to accommodate changing trends, with BTR being at the forefront of this growth.”