Profit boost at Barratt

Barratt completed 17,579 homes in the year ending June 30 2018, the highest level of completions in a decade, 184 up on last year’s figure (2017: 17,395).

The firm said in a trading update today that it expects profit before tax to be around £835 million (2017: £765.1 million) with a sales rate of 0.72 net private reservations per active outlet per week, matching last year.

Average selling price on completions in the year increased by around 5% to around £289,000 (2017: £275,200), with private ASP increasing by around 5.1% to around £329,000 (2017: £313,100), benefiting from mix changes as well as some underlying house price inflation.

Total plots forward sold as at June 30 2018 are up 4% at 10,155 (2017: 9,762 plots) at a value of £2,175.7 million (2017: £2,144.4 million).

"It has been a very good year for the group both operationally and financially with strong customer demand for our high quality new homes across our business," said Barratt ceo David Thomas. "As we celebrate our 60th anniversary we have delivered our highest number of completions in a decade, reinforcing our position as the UK's largest housebuilder, whilst continuing to lead the industry in customer satisfaction and build quality.

"We …