WEST Bridgford lettings agent Slater & Brandley has launched a residential sales arm.
The company says it has expanded its lettings business by 140 per cent over the past year. It has now created two part-time sales roles with its latest expansion.
It joins the estate agency market as property prices continue to rise. National house prices have grown 1.9 per cent since June 2012, making the average house price now £168,941, according to the Nationwide House Price Index.
Managing director Garry Slater said: "All of the leading authorities, including mortgage lenders Halifax and Nationwide, have confirmed a rise in house prices in recent months.
"The Government's recently-launched Help to Buy scheme is helping home buyers make the next step up the property ladder and first-time buyers can now enter the market with as little as five per cent deposit, helping make property affordable once again.
"Long recognised as an essential ingredient in property chains, first-time buyers play an important role in supporting the general housing market.
"These conditions have helped to underpin our recent decision to establish a sales arm at a time when the property market in West Bridgford and, indeed, many areas of Nottingham is improving.
"The summer is traditionally the busiest time of the year for sales and we expect 2013 to be a good year on the whole."
Mr Slater said the company's focus for residential sales would be on its core values of communication, service and trust.
The firm is offering no estate agency fees to the first 25 home owners who instruct it to sell their home.