FR: Can you start by giving us an overview of your career to date?
My career has been firmly rooted in underwriting and credit assessment, where I’ve developed a deep understanding of risk and lending across a range of customer profiles. I joined Paragon’s buy-to-let team, drawn by its strong proposition and was eager to contribute to this specialist area.
In the years leading up to the financial crisis, I worked as a relationship manager, assessing lending for portfolio landlords. I later moved into management, leading the underwriting function as operations manager for several years. In 2024, I was appointed director of mortgage lending.
I consider myself a seasoned credit professional with a strong strategic lens and a genuine passion for the buy-to-let sector.
FR: And can you please describe your current role in a nutshell?
I oversee the end-to-end mortgage lending operation, ensuring we deliver a high standard of service to our intermediary partners and landlord customers.
My role blends operational leadership with shaping our strategic direction. This sees me align our service delivery with the broader needs of the business, balancing customer needs with commercial priorities. Doing so helps us remain competitive and within our risk appetite, supporting sustainable growth and meeting evolving regulatory expectations. It’s important for us to be resilient, agile and forward-thinking in the ever-evolving buy-to-let and private rented sector (PRS) landscape.
FR: What do you like most about your job?
The opportunity to make a meaningful difference, whether that’s helping a landlord secure their next investment or collaborating with our intermediary partners to deliver tailored solutions. I’m genuinely passionate about the PRS and the role we play in supporting it. It’s incredibly rewarding to contribute to a sector that provides essential housing and to know that the service we deliver can have a real, positive impact.
FR: And what are the challenges?
One of the key challenges lies in balancing our commitment to supporting customers with the need to operate within a robust regulatory framework. We are always looking for ways to say ‘yes’ to good business, but it must be done responsibly. That means applying sound judgment, understanding the nuances of each case, and ensuring our decisions are aligned with both our risk appetite and regulatory expectations.
FR: Do you have any tips that will help brokers get cases over the line?
Brokers do an excellent job gathering information through detailed fact finds, but it’s often the additional context, the story behind the numbers, that helps us fully understand a case.
My advice is to take the time to speak directly with the underwriter, especially on more complex applications. That conversation can uncover key insights that aren’t always visible in the documentation.
We pride ourselves on offering direct access to underwriters, and it’s a powerful way to build relationships, enhance understanding, and ultimately get more cases across the line.
FR: Paragon launched a new mortgage application platform earlier this year. Has this changed the way you and your team work, and if so, how?
While our core focus on building strong relationships with brokers remains unchanged, the new platform has enhanced our ability to deliver on that promise. By integrating data sources into the application process, we can make quicker, more informed decisions without relying on excessive documentation. This efficiency allows our team to spend more time engaging with brokers and supporting their clients, which is where we add the most value.
FR: More recently, you’ve carried out further enhancements to streamline the buy-to-let application process for landlords with up to 15 properties. Why is this?
Buy-to-let is at the heart of what we do, and we’ve built a deep understanding of the market and our customers over many years. By leveraging performance data and integrated technology, we can now make faster, data-driven decisions for straightforward cases — reducing time to offer and improving the overall experience. This approach not only benefits landlords with smaller portfolios, but also frees up our team to focus on more complex and specialist lending needs.
Whether a customer is just starting out or managing a large portfolio, our goal is to provide a seamless, supportive journey that reflects their individual needs.
FR: Finally, describe your dream home in three words?
On the beach.
