Scottish property and lettings firm with portfolio of thousands of homes sold

Sandstone UK Property Management Solutions, the Edinburgh-based business founded by Peter Grant, has been bought by Scottish letting and estate agency DJ Alexander, which highlighted its appetite for further acquisitions.

The Sandstone purchase adds close to 2,000 properties under management to the DJ Alexander portfolio. Sandstone was formerly known as Grant Property, with its founder having launched the business in the late 1990s. It trades as Sandstone Management Mr Grant, chief executive of Sandstone, said: “After 25 years building one of the region’s largest and most respected residential property management agencies, it’s time to move on to something else.

“I’m proud of what we’ve built and know that we hand it to the DJ Alexander and Lomond team in good shape for the next stage of Sandstone’s journey. It’s in great hands and I look forward to watching the business that I’ve loved evolve and grow further under its new management.”

David Alexander, chief executive of DJ Alexander, said: “As we near 60 acquisitions as a group, this latest transaction is close to my heart as it complements our Scotland expansion in particular. Adding some 2,000 properties under management powers us to become a market leader north of the Border - and we’re not done yet.

“We are on a mission and have a strong appetite for further transactions, and will always be on the lookout for high-quality businesses as we seek to scale and professionalise the sales and lettings sector further in the future.”

Ed Phillips, chief executive of Lomond, said: “I’m delighted to welcome the teams at Sandstone as the latest addition to the Lomond family.

“As you can see from our relentless activity, we are set on growing to become the ultimate leader in property agency businesses in the UK and the largest acquirer. We have the resources and the team to do so at pace.”

He claimed “no one else in the UK property sector” matches Lomond’s “ambition or capability”.