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18.
May
2018.
Property Company trebles portfolio with purchase of 74 flats in Ashford

Media Release

18 May 2018

Property Company trebles portfolio with purchase of 74 flats in Ashford

Innovative property company A Better Choice for Property has confirmed multi-million pound deals to buy 74 flats in Ashford town centre, trebling its portfolio of homes to rent.

In January the company appointed Keith Hollidge as commercial development manager with the aim of building a portfolio of 400-500 properties over the next couple of years.

Details have now been announced of three contracts to purchase a total of 74 one and two bedroom flats. They represent further expansion for A Better Choice for Property, which was established by Ashford Borough Council in 2014.

The deals swell the company's property portfolio to 98 and it is actively looking for more across the borough, especially new build flats and houses. Blocks of one and two bedroom flats and also two and three bedroom houses are being sought.

The three latest deals are:

  • The off-plan purchase of 31 apartments at the corner of George Street and Victoria Crescent, off Victoria Way. Called La Scierie (The Saw Mill), the block has been built by Ingleton Luxury Homes on the site of the former Travis Perkins saw mill. The apartments are nearing completion and consist of 10 two bedroom and 21 one bedroom flats. Built to an extremely high specification, the flats will appeal to the executive lettings market.

 

  • The off-plan purchase of 28 flats in Victoria Crescent, on another former Travis Perkins site on the opposite side of the road from La Scierie, from Leath Park Developments. Construction is underway on 14 one bedroom and 14 two bedroom flats, with work expected to be completed by February 2019.

 

  • The purchase of 15 flats in North Street from the Greenlight Group, comprising 12 one bedroom and three two bedroom flats. The first tenants moved in the day after completion last week and 12 of the 15 properties in the former Barclays Bank are already let.    

An agency will be appointed soon to handle the lettings for La Scierie, which is due to be completed in July.

Tom Ingleton, chief executive of Ingleton Luxury Homes, said the spacious apartments at La Scierie feature Italian designer kitchens, LED lighting systems, marble-effect porcelain tiles, TVs fitted in the bathroom and bi-folding doors to private balconies.

"It has been a pleasure doing business with the company. They are highly professional, efficient and proactive. These are fabulous apartments, just a short walk from the train station and the town centre. And once all the developments in the area like the cinema are completed it will be a wonderful place to live."

Darren Welch, managing director of Leath Park Developments said: "This is another example of the council's proactive approach to providing housing in the area and we've enjoyed working with its team to deliver these apartments at Victoria Crescent."

David McClure from the Greenlight Group, which specialises in converting offices into residential property, said: "We bought the former bank from Threadneedle in November 2016 and converted it to 15 flats under permitted development rights. Dealing with A Better Choice for Property has been straightforward and we were delighted with how smooth the deal went through."

A Better Choice for Property effectively operates as a buy-to-let investment company, targeting people in work in Ashford who can afford to rent.

They are given one-year tenancies that can then be extended by further yearly increments or on a monthly rolling contract, affording flexibility to the tenants, while enabling communities to develop. The emphasis is on providing a high-quality customer experience to tenants from start to finish and thus offering A Better Choice for Property!

The property company has carefully grown a portfolio of one, two, three and four bedroom homes across the borough, ranging from flats to detached houses. The company paid interest to the council of £167,646 in the 2017-18 financial year. This money has been put towards the provision of services across the borough.

The company is interested in purchasing off-plan, buying sites for development either outright or in joint venture or buying completed developments. Contact keith@abcproperty.org

ENDS

Notes for Editors

How it works

Obviously the company needs to act quickly in the commercial environment to capitalise on opportunities such as the one at La Scierie. Therefore, the company requests permission of the council's members to 'draw down' tranches of funding in order that it has the autonomy to make the decisions it needs to in the marketplace.

A £30 million finance facility has recently been approved to enable the company to rapidly expand its property portfolio and operations.

The council lends this money to the property company at a market rate, which ensures the company does not have an unfair advantage in the market. The company makes money from market rents and the appreciation of its assets.

The homes owned by the Property Company are currently managed by the council's successful ABC Lettings management service, which recharges the cost to the company.

High res images available

For more information contact:

Darren Laws
Public relations
01634 671167
Darren.laws@zesttheagency.com