Watford-based bridging lender Cheval has won Bridging and Commercial’s 2010 Bridging Lender of the Year Award for the second year running.
Voted solely by brokers and intermediaries via Bridging and Commercial’s online poll, we decided to investigate what makes Cheval so special that 60 per cent of readers voted for them...
According to Edward Webber from brokerage John Charcol, it’s their ‘easy and approachable nature’ which makes them so appealing to brokers.
He said: “Whenever I call Gareth Lewis [National Sales Manager at Cheval], eight times out of ten he picks up the phone, and if he doesn’t he always gets back to me.
“Sandy Kokkinos [one of Cheval’s underwriters] says exactly what’s needed – she puts it clearly – which just makes it all easy.
“And sometimes, with the more difficult cases, Cheval will come through when no other lender will. They can fit round pegs into square holes.”
But it’s a particularly recent case that’s really impressed Mr Webber. “The week before last I put forward a client for a quick assessment. That was on Thursday. They came back to me immediately and said yes.
“The next day I sent in the necessary documents. They must have contacted the client that day because by Monday a valuation had been carried out, and the offer was produced on the Thursday – that’s just fantastic!”
Another advisor, James Nixon, has been working with the lender for six years and puts their success down to their ‘efficiency and speed’. He said: “They are very quick and they stick to their decision too, which is important. Once they’ve agreed to lend they lend.”
For Gareth Lewis, National Sales Manager at Cheval, the formula is simple. “Keep it stress-free and deliver on your promise quickly and the votes will flood in,” he says.
Cheval was established in 1995 as a principal lender in the short term finance market. The first bridging finance lender to become a full member of the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), as well as a founding member of the Association of Short Term Lenders (ASTL), the company has proved to be a long-standing presence within the industry, as well as an innovator of bridging finance.
Currently, Cheval are halfway through their Blue Skies Road Show; a series of seminars designed to educate brokers on bridging finance and build new relationships, in order to generate new business on all sides.
The first of their kind – the seminars are devoted to bridging finance only and no other areas in financial services – and have proved hugely popular.
Commenting on the road show’s success so far, Head of Operations, Allan Kay said: “We have always tried to educate brokers about the varied uses of bridging finance through our in-house training sessions, but the positive response from the road show attendees has been overwhelming, and has highlighted to us just how much taking the education process out to a wider broker audience was needed.”
Cheval believes its success is based on its reputation for speed, flexibility and service excellence – an approach that Mike Hoare of Lifetime Mortgages and Finance has found to be very refreshing. He said: “We have always found Cheval to be fast and efficient in their approach. With good levels of flexibility in their lending approach and competitive interest rates offered. They stand at the forefront of their profession.”
Head of Finance, Gavin Diamond, has been with the company since 2007. He says it’s the hard work from a tight-knit team that affords them the service that brokers value so much. He added: “The award recognises both service and product excellence, so we are very pleased to win it for the second year in succession. It's always nice to receive recognition for the hard work that our team is putting in.”
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