Business Development Manager (PBSA/BTR - North)

Location: Remote (home/field-based covering the North of England and Scotland, including Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Edinburgh and Glasgow)

Hours: 37 hours per week

Salary: £35,000 DOE + car allowance + commission (OTE £70,000)

We are growing our presence in the Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) and Build to Rent (BTR) sectors and are looking for a commercially driven Business Development Manager in the North of England to help scale this area of the business. This role will cover Scotland and Northern England, including Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool and Edinburgh and Glasgow. You will ideally be based in Greater Manchester or West Yorkshire, allowing efficient driving access across Northern England and Scotland and a practical monthly drive to Sheffield HQ.

UniHomes is the UK’s go-to student accommodation marketplace, supporting millions of students’ searches every year and delivering high‑quality enquiries to accommodation providers nationwide. As demand for varying formats of accommodation continues to rise, we are working with a wider range of PBSA and BTR operators to help renters find their perfect home and the operators improve their visibility and fill rooms.

In this role, you will take ownership of developing new PBSA and BTR partnerships, working primarily with individual buildings and smaller portfolios. You will identify opportunities, win new partners, and manage relationships end to end through onboarding, performance, and renewal. You’ll act as a trusted commercial contact throughout the advertising term, ensuring partners see ongoing value from UniHomes. Where appropriate, you’ll also support partners as they explore more strategic ways of working with us as their portfolios grow. This is a field‑based role with a high level of autonomy, offering the chance to make a tangible impact in a growing segment of the business, alongside strong earning potential through uncapped commission.

Key responsibilities

• Identify and target PBSA and BTR opportunities across the UK, focusing on individual buildings and smaller portfolios.
• Proactively research and approach new operators aligned to the UniHomes proposition.
• Spend significant time in the field meeting prospective partners across your territory.
• Present the UniHomes advertising offering, clearly demonstrating value, reach, and performance.
• Manage the full commercial lifecycle from initial outreach through to close.
• Support new partners through onboarding, ensuring listings are well set up from launch.
• Build strong, long‑term relationships, acting as the main commercial point of contact.
• Use performance insight and market context to lead renewal discussions.
• Identify opportunities for relationships to deepen or evolve over time.
• Keep CRM records, pipeline activity and reporting up to date.
• Stay close to PBSA and BTR market trends, student demand, and competitor activity.
• Represent UniHomes professionally at meetings and relevant industry events.
• Attend monthly meetings at Sheffield HQ and occasional overnight stays when required.

Skills and experience

• Proven experience in a field‑based sales or business development role.
• Experience within PBSA, BTR, student accommodation or property portal sales is highly desirable.
• Strong communication, presentation, and negotiation skills.
• Comfortable with frequent travel, long drives and managing a national territory.
• Self‑motivated, target‑driven and resilient.
• Ability to build rapport quickly and develop long‑term relationships.
• Full UK driving licence and access to your own vehicle.

Benefits

Our impressive benefits package and perks comprise holidays, length‑of‑service days, voluntary day, enhanced pension scheme, pension salary sacrifice scheme, healthcare scheme, Employee Assistant Programme, sick pay, enhanced maternity & paternity pay, career progression, commitment to personal and professional development, employee awards, referral scheme, staff discounts, mental health and financial support, and company social events.

We are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace where everyone can thrive and which values individuals for their unique perspectives. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation. Applicants must already have the permanent and unrestricted right to work in the UK. Unfortunately, we are unable to offer visa sponsorship as we do not hold a sponsor licence.