Steven Murgatroyd, 55, joins estate agent Halls in the North Shropshire town after spending the past five years with Strutt and Parker in Harrogate, where he previously worked for another estate agent for 10 years.

Away from work, his passion is fly fishing and he also writes for Fly Fishing and Fly Tying Magazine.

Joining Halls gave him the opportunity to move closer to relatives, having spent much of his childhood living in Ruthin. He and his wife, who have a daughter and son in their 20s, now live in Chirk, having bought their home through Halls.

Starting his career in the Home Counties, he progressed to run a country house department in a small firm before gaining experience as a branch manager and mortgage broker. He later moved to Yorkshire where he gained valuable experience selling everything from residential development land and new homes to country properties.

“Halls is a multi-disciplined practice and a traditional estate agent, which is the sort of firm that I want to work for,” he said. “We can offer a wide range of complementary services to clients.

“My aim is to build on solid foundations that are already here and increase Halls’ market share in the Whitchurch area and South Cheshire. It’s a well liked area and Whitchurch has a wide range of shops and facilities that will appeal to buyers.”

Estate agency was not his original career choice, having graduated from Bangor University with the intention of becoming an English teacher. However, he has no regrets.

“I love the variety of the work,” he explained. “Every day is different and I enjoy helping people achieve their objectives. In terms of the current market, it’s not all doom and gloom.

“There are still lots of committed buyers out there but sellers have to be realistic with their pricing. The key thing to remember is that if you have to take less for the house that you are selling, you can probably pay less for the one that you are buying.”