Miles & Barr is to open a new Ashford town centre office next month, as part of an ambitious expansion plan in Kent.

The firm says it wants to open two to three new branches a year across the county.

The company is primarily based in the east of the county at the moment, but there are plans to potentially expand beyond the county’s borders.

The firm’s sales director, Rob Sabin, commented: “Geographically, we’re going to look to move across Kent. We’re not going to jump outside Kent straight away, we’ll look to do it reasonably strategically.

“For now, we have our target towns that we want to go for in the county. It’s going to be a case of when the right premises come up for us.”
The Ashford branch in Kings Parade on the High Street, which will be managed by Joe Bull, will open on 2 July.

“The market is still pretty good at the moment,” Sabin added.

He continued: “We might see a softening of the market and a return to a bit of normality as opposed to the crazy couple of years we’ve had since the first lockdown, with the stamp duty holiday as well.

“It will have an impact, but the market is still pretty buoyant at the moment.

“Off the back of the pandemic, in the rental market, we’ve seen longer tenancies being signed and fewer tenants giving notice to leave as we’d seen in previous years. That’s probably due to the cost of living and the moving costs which would be incurred.

“But we’re seeing a lack of stock in that market and that’s seen rental values increase.”

The Ashford branch will be Miles & Barr’s latest office, following the opening last month of a new shopfront in Herne Bay, marking the company’s 20th year of operation in the coastal town.

The new Herne Bay branch is located on the corner of the High Street and William Street, which is a more prominent high street position than Miles & Barr’s old office across the road.

Mark Brooks, CEO of Miles & Barr, commented, “The office has established a great reputation which has made them a go to agent in this popular seaside town.

“Our high street move marks our second relocation in Herne Bay this year, following the opening of our newly refurbished head office at The Links, Herne Business Park, in January 2022.”

Founded in 1999, Miles & Barr has grown organically and through acquisitions to become a leader in Kent’s property market. The independent property group is a specialist in selling and buying homes, lettings, property management, relocations, financial services, commercial sales and lettings, as well as conveyancing.

With operations across what will soon be 13 sales and three letting branches, as well as a head office located in Herne Bay, Miles & Barr employs more than 260 members of staff from across the county.