Bellway Raises UK Home Sales Guidance After Rise in Deals
Bellway Plc lifted its guidance on home sales after a period of 'improved affordability' supported an uptick in deals over the past few months.
The builder said it expected to sell between 8,600 and 8,700 homes in the year through July 2025, up from previous guidance of 'at least 8,500', according to a statement Tuesday. That would be an improvement on the roughly 7,600 homes delivered in the same period a year earlier, but still well below the 10,000-plus homes completed in its final financial year before Covid-19 struck.
'We are on track to deliver strong growth in volume output and profits,' Chief Executive Officer Jason Honeyman said in the statement. 'We have a healthy forward order book and outlet opening programme, which will serve as a platform for further growth.'
Housebuilders have been under pressure from higher mortgage costs, which have impacted demand. UK Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said last month that a government target to build 1.5 million homes over five years was 'stretching.'
But Bellway's focus on mid-market homes has made it more accessible to a wider group of buyers during the downturn. The company's larger share of apartments compared with rival builders may prove advantageous as higher mortgage rates and the cost-of-living crisis push buyers toward smaller homes.
Bellway's private reservation rate rose 5.9% to an average of 161 per week between Feb. 1 and June 1, compared with 152 in the same period a year earlier. The company said it expects the overall average selling price of its homes to be around £315,000 in the year through July, up from about £308,000 a year earlier.
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