A branch of national lettings agency Martin & Co is to be run by a landlord.

Grant Simpson – who describes himself as a landlord and property developer – has purchased the Fife branch from outgoing franchisees Kim and Jackie Godwin, who are retiring.

After running his family’s businesses for more than three decades, Simpson retired himself – only to “get bored” after just three months and start looking for a new challenge.

“I spent time managing my own buy to lets and doing some property developments, but I was always keen on getting into the lettings side of estate agency as I knew how resilient and rewarding it was” he says.

“Once I saw that the Cupar branch of Martin & Co was up for sale, I looked into it straight away as it’s an area I’m so familiar with. I could see at once that it was a superb business, so I went for it.”

Eric Walker, managing director of Martin & Co in Scotland adds: “We are delighted to be supporting Grant Simpson with his acquisition of our Cupar business. East Fife is one of Scotland’s property hotspots with market analysts reporting record house price inflation, with prices in parts of Fife rising by more than 26 per cent in the last year.

“Rental growth is strong too. Quality of life is attracting homemakers and investors alike to the area. Cupar a great place to be – whether as a location for business, or as a place to live and to make a home.“

Simpson concludes: “From individual investors to great landed estates, we’ve many long-standing landlords working with us, so we’ll ensure that the quality of service my experienced team provides continues to be at the same level of excellence as always.”