Housebuilder Persimmon has blamed supply chain problems, labour shortages and Government inaction on the planning system as it reported a drop in sales in the first half of the year.
The York-based firm, generally considered to be the UK’s second largest housebuilder, has released a trading update in which sales for the first half of 2022 fell 8% to £1.69bn. House sale completions also fell, from 7,406 in the same period a year earlier to 6,652.
The company said its forward sales of £1.87bn were ahead of last year’s levels, however, and soaring house prices were more than making up for the increasing costs it was seeing.
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And it said that despite a range of challenges in the construction sector, it expected half-year results to be “modestly above our expectations.”
Persimmon chief executive Dean Finch said: “I am pleased we have further enhanced our build quality in the period while also driving build efficiency to historical highs and increasing housing gross margin. We continued to complement this progress with high quality, disciplined investments in land driving growth in our outlet position.
“We have delivered this despite the significant on-going challenges being faced by the industry. As we rebuild our outlet position, delays in the planning system, disruption in material supply chains and challenges in securing labour have impacted completions in the period.
“We anticipate, however, profit at the half year to be modestly above our expectations reflecting strong demand and positive pricing conditions. Our forward sales position is robust.”
In the statement, Persimmon blamed problems in the planning system for delays in building homes. It said it had 1,500 plots affected by planning wrangles and “in the absence of firm guidance from government this uncertainty will continue”.
Persimmon said it had bought 8,800 new plots for housebuilding during the first half of the year and had a “robust balance sheet and high levels of liquidity”. It said demand for housing remained strong and it anticipated having between 14,500 and 15,000 house completions this year.
It has confirmed an early announcement to pay a dividend 235p per share this year.
