Barclays has reduced rates on a selection of products in its residential purchase range, with rates falling by up to 0.39%. On the lender’s two-year fixed rates at 85% LTV have dropped to 4.99% from 5.23%, with a £899 fee. The product also comes with a no-fee option, where rates have dropped from 5.57% to 5.18%. For the five-year products at the same LTV, rates have decreased from 4.92% to 4.78% for the £899 fee option and from 5.13% to 4.95% fee-free.

Aspen has brought three sites together to complete one complex refurbishment bridging deal, which is valued at £5.625m, comprising a heavy works conversion in Cheltenham, and a church redevelopment and nearby brownfield land purchase in Bath. Despite all three projects having been visited and ready to complete, drawdown was delayed until planning approval had been granted for the church conversion. The site in Cheltenham will see a building of 18 flats reconfigured to offer 15 fully refurbished luxury one- and two-bedroom apartments. The church in Bath is being converted into eight one-, two- and three-bedroom units with the additional land purchase providing parking spaces for the new tenants. The 65% LTV deal was completed on Aspen’s flat rate of 0.94% per month over 16 months and exit will be achieved through completion and sale of several units.

Ecclesiastical Insurance has appointed Adam Wright as its new property underwriting director for the UK. He joins from Aviva, where he had worked as property underwriting manager for the past six years. Wright replaces Paul Messar, who has moved to a new group role, supporting underwriting capability across the firm’s insurance businesses. Wright brings over 30 years of underwriting experience to the specialist insurer, having worked in the London market for nearly 20 years, both in Lloyd’s with Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance and MS Amlin, and the company market with Aviva and RSA. Prior to this, he spent a decade in the regional market with RSA.

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