Property Appointments: Harris Lamb; IM Properties; GJS Dillon

HARRIS LAMB has strengthened its property management team at the expense of a rival firm.

The firm has appointed Jonathan Aspinall as an Associate Director, luring him away from Cushman & Wakefield, where he spent eight years overseeing a team of property managers.
 
Mr Aspinall joins a team of 12 and will be based at Harris Lamb’s Birmingham office.

Richard Fantham, director of the business, said: “This is a key appointment for us and we are delighted that Jonathan has agreed to join us. He has an excellent reputation within the industry and a proven performance record for expertly managing property portfolios and generating fee income.
 
“Having been based in Birmingham for the past 10 years, he has extensive regional knowledge and has developed a strong relationship with national clients. His passion for implementing new practices and systems to improve service and efficiency is something we’re particularly keen to encourage as part of our ongoing business development plan.
 
“Jonathan will join a team which currently oversees a number of national properties and portfolios, sharing his expertise and insight with them to help develop the team and grow the department’s instructions. We’re confident he will be a huge asset to the business.”

Mr Aspinall has also worked at GVA in Birmingham and Workman in Manchester.
 
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IM Properties has head-hunted one of the country’s best-known planning advisers, Turley’s David Smith, to take charge of its 12m sq ft industrial land bank.
 
Mr Smith (left) has been with the high-profile consultancy for 13 years, based out of its Birmingham office, but with a national remit on helping its logistics clients bring forward key strategic sites and assisting occupiers in meeting their operational requirements.
 
The next step in his career is to join Midlands’ based IMP as planning director during January 2017.
 
IMP’s UK development director, Kevin Ashfield said the appointment would enable the privately owned property company to deliver on its growing land bank
 
“We’ve brought over 6m sq ft of space through the planning process to date but now we’re looking to take the business to the next level,” he said.
 
“We’ve secured land which could deliver 12m sq ft of logistics and manufacturing space in the short-to-medium term and the appointment of David is key to achieving this ambition.
 
“David’s name was the one that really stood out to us as he has worked with IMP for a number of years on various projects. He has a clear vision of the future delivery of industrial sites – he understands the sophistication of the logistics market, it’s challenges and is widely respected. We are very pleased to have persuaded him to make the move.”
 
In his new role, Mr Smith will focus predominantly on the logistics sector, where there is strong demand for commercial space.

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A FORMER trainee at Worcestershire commercial property consultancy GJS Dillon has repaid the firm’s faith in her by qualifying as a Chartered Surveyor and Registered Valuer.

Hayley Miles (left) qualifies after passing her APC (Assessment of Professional Competence) to become a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
 
For Miss Miles, qualification marks the end of a tough seven years which has seen her complete a five-year part-time degree in Real Estate at Birmingham City University, where she achieved first class honours, and two years vocational training at GJS Dillon, first in the sales and letting department and latterly in the professional services and valuation team.
 
Starting as an apprentice with Solihull Council at the age of 19, Miss Miles worked in office based commercial property roles for a number of Midlands councils, including Worcestershire County Council, before deciding to go to university to qualify as a Chartered Surveyor.
 
She says: “I had seen surveyors out and about looking at properties which I dealt with in the office.  I wanted a role where I too could leave the office to inspect and advise on property, but to do that I needed to become a Chartered Surveyor.
 
“Working for GJS Dillon for the past two years has been particularly valuable in allowing me to pass my APC.  I’ve already carried out more than 300 property inspections and valuations which has boosted my professional knowledge and expertise.  Now I have qualified I am going to continue to focus on commercial and residential property valuations and to expand my knowledge of building surveying.”

Jonathan Mountford, Head of GJS Dillon’s Professional Services and Valuation department, said: “GJS Dillon is a firm which very much believes in playing its part in training the next generation of property professionals, so we are delighted that Hayley has qualified.  She was already a valuable team member before achieving her Chartered status, but we now expect her to play an even fuller role in the future success of the firm.”