<p>Crest Nicholson has seen its profit fall 60% in its half year as it suffered the effects of market turmoil in the autumn, subsequent economic uncertainty and affected margins from a “more benign sales environment”.</p> <p><span>Reporting on its unaudited interim results for the six months ending April 30 2023, the housebuilder said that its adjusted pre-tax profit fell to £20.9 million from HY 2022’s £52.5 million. Revenue dropped 22% against 2022’s half year to £282.7 million, reflecting “the economic uncertainty and lower confidence in the housing market during the first half”.</span></p><p></p> <p><span>During the period, home completions decreased from HY22’s 1,096 to 894, with the private average selling price lifting 5.9% to £433,000. Crest’s average sales outlets were at 48 against last year’s 58.</span></p><p></p> <p><span>Its sales per outlet per week (SPOW) were 0.54 compared to HY22’s 0.72. Crest said the SPOW rate of the first 11 weeks of its trading year – 0.35 - illustrated the challenging environment of late 2022.</span></p><p></p> <p><span>The firm noted that in previous years, housebuilders had been able to counteract high inflation and rising construction costs with higher selling prices. But “in a more benign sales environment this has not been possible and has consequently impacted our …