Taylor Wimpey order book hits record levels
TAYLOR WIMPEY said “a much improved and healthier housing market” had helped it to deliver a 42 per cent jump in half year profits.
The housebuilder yesterday revealed pre-tax profits of £109m on sales up 11 per cent to £1.01bn in the six months to 30 June.
“There has been meaningful improvement in the housing market, with more positive consumer sentiment, a more available and affordable mortgage market, and the presence of government mortgage schemes, all adding to a favourable outlook,” chief executive Peter Redfern said.
The group expects full year volumes to be towards the upper end of expectations thanks to the strength of its order book, which stood at a record 7,378 homes on 28 July and is valued at £1.3bn.
British housebuilders have experienced an uplift in demand for their homes since the April launch of a government scheme to help struggling housebuyers purchase properties with a deposit of as little as five per cent.
Taylor Wimpey said that since its launch, 1,300 homes have been reserved using the Help to Buy scheme with a further 250 going through the qualification process with agents.
An improving housing market also helped lift operating profits at Rightmove by 15 per cent for the first half of the year to £49m.
The property listing website’s revenues rose 16 per cent to £67.2m while traffic to its website was up 20 per cent.