Our newest senior solicitor is working with clients to increase the number of student rooms available around the University of Hull.
Tom Herd works with a wide range of commercial property clients across East Yorkshire and beyond, but a large percentage of his time is spent assisting with the purchasing and refinancing of student accommodation in Hull. Tom said:
“I have a real mix of different clients but recently I’ve seen an increase in demand from my buy-to-let clients who are purchasing rental properties, often referred to as houses of multiple occupancy (HMO), in order to help meet the growing need for student accommodation around the University of Hull.
“Despite house prices rising, I’m still seeing lots of buy-to-let purchases and the market is not showing any signs of slowing down. The university is growing, so with that comes more students and more demand for student accommodation.
“HMOs seem to get a bad reputation, and there are some unscrupulous landlords out there, so we facilitate our clients to do it by the book, follow the law and meet every responsibility to tenants and the local community. Done right, student accommodation is a big opportunity for property investors, and some of my clients own companies that are responsible for hundreds of student rooms in the city. That, in turn, generates a lot of work as they can scale their businesses relatively quickly.
“They appreciate the work I do for them and the fixed prices I can offer, so they know exactly what everything is going to cost.”
Tom is a commercial property specialist and has recently been promoted to the role of senior solicitor, after five years with our firm. He said:
“I am ambitious and Wilkin Chapman is a progressive and modern firm, and the largest one in the local area. Wilkin Chapman has provided me with an excellent platform to build my career on. As I’ve been here for five years now I’ve taken on more responsibility which has helped me to grow as an individual so I’m really pleased to be promoted to senior solicitor.”
“I like to get to know people and establish those longer term relationships that you can build in commercial property. It’s not just buying and selling houses - it can be buying commercial units, buying plots of land to build or develop, granting or reserving rights of way, dealing with landlords granting or tenants taking a lease, and many more things.”
