Belvoir Lettings has announced that industry veteran Michael Stoop has joined the board as a non-executive director, with Nicholas Leeming stepping down from a similar position.   

Belvoir, the UK’s largest property franchise, says Leeming leaves on April 10 after five years service, but Stoop is joining immediately. 

After starting his agency career with Winkworth, Stoop joined the Legal & General Group in 1992 where he was instrumental in setting up Legal & General Franchising Ltd.

This converted its corporate estate agency business into a wholly franchised network before being sold in 2014 to The Property Franchise Group, then known as Martin & Co.

Stoop then became group managing director of TPFG; he left last year.

Belvoir was, of course, in unsuccessful discussions with TPFG over a possible merger during 2017 but terms could not be agreed.

Stoop has been a member of The Property Ombudsman board since 2001, becoming vice chairman in late 2015. Earlier this year he became a non-exec director of PropTech firm Sorbet HQ.

Following Leeming’s retirement from the board, Stoop will take over the role of chairman of the Remuneration Committee and become a member of the Audit Committee.