Hodge has appointed a new mortgage managing director and strengthened its team as business picks up ahead of the end of the stamp duty holiday.

The Cardiff-based bank has confirmed Ryan Davies as its managing director of mortgages, after holding the role on an interim basis since last March.

He replaces Matt Burton, who is now group retail director and deputy chief executive. Davies has held a variety of roles at Hodge, after joining the lender through a graduate scheme in 2015.

Davis says: “With the stamp duty holiday ending in March, we are seeing increased demand across all of our mortgage products. We felt that, to maintain an excellent level of customer service, we needed to bring increased expertise into the team and make the journey more streamlined.”

Hodge has also appointed Emma Williamson its new head of mortgage origination. The firm adds Williamson has worked for the lender “for a number of years”, and previously managed its mortgage completions team.

The bank has also hired three new underwriters and a business development manager to its mortgage unit.

Davis says: “Completions will now be managed within the newly formed mortgage origination team who will process applications from decision in principle through to completion.”

He adds: “Hodge has always prided itself on its flexible and personal approach to each application and this new team structure will allow us to cope with the additional demand, as well as not having to compromise on this level of service.”

Last week, the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association called on the government for the extension, or phased withdrawal, of the stamp duty holiday, due to end on 31 March, which saw mortgage applications spike in the second half of 2020.

The lending body says the stamp duty holiday has helped create “the current surge in demand for property purchases”, which has left lenders, valuers and solicitors, struggling to meet demand. The exemption was introduced last July, to boost the property market hit by the pandemic.

Imla adds it expects gross mortgage lending to rise to £283bn this year, in its report, The New Normal.