Taylor Wimpey sees house sales rebound
HOUSEBUILDER Taylor Wimpey said sales have recovered after a lull around the time of the general election but political uncertainty is leading to caution in the sector.
The UK’s third-largest volume housebuilder said private sales rate for the year to date are broadly flat year-on-year at 0.58 sales per site per week, while its order book is strong.
The company said it expects to complete 4,650 homes in the first half at an average selling price of £167,000. That compares with 4,702 homes at an average selling price of 153,000 in the same period last year
“In the short term, however, with ongoing political and economic uncertainty, we continue to run the business on a cautious basis, with selective land investment and an ongoing focus on costs and cash,” Taylor Wimpey said in a statement.
Taylor Wimpey echoed comments from luxury flat developer Berkeley Homes last week that sales had recovered since a dip around the general election.
But house prices remain under pressure due to macro economic uncertainty.
House prices in May fell 0.4 percent, according to mortgage lender Halifax, while the Nationwide Building Society reported a 0.5 per cent rise for the month, half the rate of the previous two months.