A qualified Quantity Surveyor, Nick has worked in the property construction and investment industry since the age of 16. He has been a full-time property investor since 2004 and presently has a multi-million pound portfolio in Yorkshire and a number of investments in Eastern Europe. From building his own home in Barnsley to managing international development projects worth hundreds of millions, Nick has a wealth of experience in the field.
After leaving school, Nick trained as a surveyor's apprentice, then from 1991 to 2005 he worked for various construction and development companies in Yorkshire, initially as a Quantity Surveyor and latterly as a Project Manager. He was responsible for the legal, financial and overall project management of a number of developments in Sheffield, including: over 400 apartments and retail units in the centre - still the largest of its kind in the city; a £6m student accommodation block; the £20m conversion of Victorian hospital buildings to form luxury dwellings on the outskirts, and the construction of 133 other dwellings in the city with a GDV of £13m.
He worked on the early stages of the scheme to regenerate the entire estate of Norfolk Park, including the overall Masterplan, and managed a nationwide partnership scheme for the delivery of nursing homes for one of the UK's leading care providers. Identifying and managing the risk associated with development projects - carrying out a very high level of due diligence and ensuring the legal side is watertight and all parties are treated fairly - is a key skill of Nick's and one of the reasons why people are confident in doing business with him.
Nick bought his first house when he was 19 and continued to buy property over the following 10 years, but it wasn't until 2004 that he decided to move in to property investing as a full time career. Says Nick, "For me property is the best investment I can make. It's something I understand, it's tangible and unlike shares, which can be wiped out overnight, property always retains some intrinsic value. There are thousands of micro-markets in the UK and successful property investing is about understanding these micro markets in the short and long term."
Nick is committed to giving back to charitable causes and raises money throughout the year by taking part in various sporting challenges, including jumping out of planes(!), running marathons and climbing mountains - in July 2010 he successfully climbed Mont Blanc.
