Richard Stearn, 46, will rejoin Berkeley before next April after leaving the firm in late 2011 to take on the Finance Director role at Quintain Estates.

Rob Perrins, Managing Director of Berkeley, said: “We are delighted that Richard has agreed to return to Berkeley as Finance Director and very much look forward to working with him in this role.”

Stearn will receive a basic annual salary of £350,000 and awards over 45,672 Berkeley shares which currently trade at £22.39 each.

He will also receive a cash payment of £359,842 in lieu of his entitlement over Quintain shares that will be forfeit when he joins Berkeley.

Stearn will remain at Quintain during the handover period as they search for his successor.

Maxwell James, Chief Executive of Quintain, said: “Richard has made a huge contribution to Quintain since joining the Company in January 2012.

“Personally, I will miss Richard’s valuable input to my team and I would like to thank him for his on-going support over the coming months.

“On behalf of the Company and the Board I would like to extend our thanks and wish him well for the future.”

Stearn said: “While I am excited about my new role, I will be sad to leave Quintain.

“The business has made significant progress in the last two years through the refocusing of the business on London and the actions we have taken to strengthen the balance sheet.

“I am proud of what has been achieved already and I will personally miss working with Max and the wider team as they move the business forward to the next stage.

“I will, of course, remain fully committed to Quintain during the handover period.”

Stearn replaces former finance director Nick Simpkin who left Berkeley last month.