Barratt profits plunge 75% as number of houses built slumps

Barratt completed 14,004 new homes in the year to the end of June, an 18.6% fall on a year earlier. Photograph: Peter Nicholls/Reuters

Barratt Developments has suffered a 75% drop in annual profit and a double-digit decline in home completions after a “challenging” year for Britain’s biggest housebuilder.

The company said the past year had proved tough for the housebuilding industry and potential buyers, as cost of living pressures, much higher mortgage rates and weak consumer confidence weighed on the housing market.