Turnover up, profit down for Aster

Aster Group’s turnover during its financial year rose to £313.7 million while a “continued and all-time high investment” in homes and inflation caused pre-tax profit to fall.

Announcing its full year results for the year to March 2024, the housing association also reiterated its plans for its largest ever investment in development, using £585 million to deliver just under 2,300 new homes by 2026. It delivered “close” to 1,000 homes over the course of the financial year, down on the previous year’s 1,312.

Turnover increased from 2023’s £301 million while operating profit climbed to £73.7 million from the previous year’s £66.8 million.

Pre-tax profit fell to £41.1 million against 2023’s £55.3 million, with the business investing £106.2 million in improvements to existing homes and the business experiencing increased costs from inflation.

Aster pointed out that the previous year’s profit had been “inflated” by a one-off £12.8 million gain following its acquisition of Enham Trust, a charity supporting the disabled.

Its costs associated with managing social housing properties and services increased by £19.1 million.

Aster’s increased investment in development over the next two years forms part of a larger, £1.9 billion programme to build 8,500 …