Development firm Henry Boot says there are "encouraging signs" that house builders are returning to the market after recent turmoil.
The Sheffield-based group pointed to signs of recovery in both the residential and industrial markets with housing developers beginning to selectively buy land, with its Hallam Land Management business having offloaded some 1,900 plots including across key sites in Coventry and Milton Keynes. In a trading update the firm also said other sites were under offer but highlighted frustrations with delays in the UK planning system which was slowing its ability to get permissions across its land bank of more than 95,000 plots.
Across its own housing development arm - Stonebridge Homes - house prices were said to be holding firm with cost inflation, materials and workforce availability issues easing. Mortgage availability was also providing cause for optimism but the firm said it needed to achieve higher sales rates across the key spring and summer periods.
