Guest speakers John Malone, executive chairman of PMS, and Ian Cameron, partner at J&E Shepherd, joined the Aldermore team for a morning of product education and market discussion.
Addressing the audience of 65 Glaswegian brokers, Charles Haresnape, managing director of residential mortgages, said: “We are solid and we are liquid and the sign above our door says we are open to lend money.”
Haresnape said the move into Scotland had been on Aldermore’s agenda for some years but preparing its systems had prevented the bank from moving north of the border earlier.
Following the presentations, brokers were invited to quiz Haresnape and his team, Steve Carruthers, head of distribution in Scotland, and Rob Barnard, head of business development, on criteria and how the bank operates.
Barnard announced that to coincide wither the launch, Aldermore would also now be accepting applications on new build residential flats which in the past had been on its list of property types it would not lend on in England and Wales.
Presently, Aldermore’s minimum valuation is £75,000 and it does not lend on ex-local authority flats but Barnard said “everything is changing”.
He said: “Once we are established in Scotland everything will be reviewed. We are currently restricting our lending to mainland Scotland while we settle down and then we will review this decision and others.”
The bank pitched service and the human touch as its USP and invited brokers to keep it on its toes to uphold these commitments.
Haresnape said: “We don’t want to hide in an ivory tower – we want to hear from you if you think we can do better and give us a shout with your good ideas.”
