CHARTERED surveyor YoungsRPS has embarked on an expansion trail which confirms it position as a leading business in the North-East property market.

The merger deal, with commercial surveyor and estate agent Stanton Mortimer, will see branches in Newcastle city centre and Northallerton come under the YoungsRPS banner.

The new locations will add to the existing YoungsRPS network of offices in Hexham, Alnwick and Sedgefield.

The merger will take the group’s number of employees to 35, operating across the North-East, North Yorshire, Cumbria and Scotland.

The move follows a successful year for YoungsRPS, which has seen turnover of £1.8m in the last 12 months and a number of major new commercial contact wins with regional housebuilders such as Anvil and Duchy Homes.

Following the merger, the combined business plans to increase turnover to £2.8m by May next year.

Stanton Mortimer clients include a faith-based charitable trust with commercial and agricultural interests throughout the UK.

Its directors, Neil Mortimer and Michael Blake, now join the board at YoungsRPS, which includes Robbie Hutchinson and Graeme Bruce, joint managing directors of YoungsRPS.

Hexham-based Mr Hutchinson said: “We are delighted to be joining forces with Stanton Mortimer. The deal will add to our all-round property expertise by bringing extra strength to our commercial property department alongside our current residential and rural offer.

“In the near future, we will be adding personnel to the rural department of the Northallerton Stanton Mortimer office – covering a wide range of agricultural matters, including farm sales, land management, utility and compulsory purchase, planning and development as well as basic payment and environmental scheme advice.

“The merger will further our presence across the North-East and North Yorkshire, allowing us to offer an even better service for our valued clients.”

Mr Blake added: “We’re delighted to join YoungsRPS. We will bring to the table our experience and local knowledge. Clients can expect to see our services grow in the future, as we acquire more specialist talent to bolster our commercial and rural teams.

YoungsRPS is prominent in identifying development land on behalf of clients, and currently has 1,500 acres under option and 700 acres of land under promotion across the region for commercial and residential development.