FTSE 100 flirts with record high but falters once more June 11, 2025 The FTSE 100 once more narrowly missed on a record closing high on Wednesday after faltering in the final moments of the trading session. The UK’s flagship index edged up 0.13 per cent to 8864.35p. This brought it just short of March’s record close of 8871.31p. Housebuilders topped the morning risers with Persimmon and Barratt [...]
Optimism on construction boom lifts housebuilder stocks June 11, 2025 Shares in the UK’s major housebuilders have all risen in the past five days as news of government investment buoys the chances of a construction market boom. Vistry and Crest, which have recently boosted their focus on affordable homes, were particular winners: Vistry has risen by more than 20 per cent since June 6, while [...]
Kevin McCloud: Housebuilder ‘oligopoly’ needs urgent reform May 2, 2025 Britain’s housebuilding industry is a cartel-like oligopoly that needs root and branch reform in order for the UK is to build enough high-quality homes to solve its housing crisis, Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud has said. In a withering assessment the track record of major housebuilders, McCloud said the UK construction sector’s supply chain had [...]
Buy Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey ahead of Spring Statement says broker March 24, 2025 Investment bank Jefferies has said investors should ‘Buy’ shares in UK housebuilders like Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey ahead of this week’s Spring Statement. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to present her Spring Statement later this week. Due to her commitment to just one major fiscal event, it was intended as an update rather than a [...]
FTSE 100 rises and gilts recover but Reeves isn’t out of the woods just yet January 15, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves was dealt some welcome good news after a surprise drop in inflation that saw gilt yields fall at the fastest pace in over a year on Wednesday, but some economists fear the development represents a temporary reprieve with inflation at risk of rebounding in the coming months. New figures from the Office [...]
Henry Boot: Property developer announces higher dividend as market recovers September 17, 2024 Property developer and investor Henry Boot has announced a five per cent rise in its interim dividend on good sales and a better outlook for the property market. Its the second time the developer has upped its dividend this year – in March, it proposed a final dividend of 4.40p, an increase of 10.0 per [...]
Henry Boot: Property developer takes key step toward 3,000-plot goal with major Coventry land sale September 16, 2024 Property developer Henry Boot has taken a significant step toward its goal of selling 3,000 plots this year, after completing a sale of nearly 500 plots to a national house builder. The London-listed firm, which is headquartered in Sheffield, confirmed its land promoter Hallam had sold 491 residential plots at Pickford Gate, Coventry, to the [...]
Barratt Developments to partner with Lloyds and Homes England on housing project September 9, 2024 Barratt Developments has announced a joint venture with Homes England and Lloyds Bank to build thousands of new homes across the country. The partnership will bring together Barratt, one of the UK’s leading housebuilders, Homes England, the government body responsible for housebuilding and regeneration in England, and Lloyds Banking Group, one of the largest funders [...]
Berkeley: On track but government housing plans require a ‘change of attitude’ September 6, 2024 Housebuilder Berkeley is on track to deliver £525m of pre-tax profit for the full year, according to an update from the firm this morning. The business, which is based in Cobham, England, said 90 per cent of this profit has already been secured through exchanged sales contracts. Berkeley also said it is “fully committed” to [...]
Grenfell: Barratt says fixing widespread cladding issues will take up to five years September 4, 2024 Barratt has said there is a shortage of qualified fire engineers who are able to refit buildings to reliable safety standards in light of the Grenfell tower disaster. “We recognise that this will take another three to five years to work through to resolution,” chief executive David Thomas said in the company’s full-year results. “There [...]