Barratt suffering the same problems as its peers

Barratt said homebuyers took longer to commit to buying ahead of the Government's spending cuts in October.

Britain's fourth largest housebuilder echoed its peers, saying a lack of mortgage lending is obstructing a recovery in the housing market.

Chief executive Mark Clare said: "Access to mortgage finance remains the single biggest issue for the industry."

A sharp drop in mortgage availability from banks rebuilding their balance sheets has hit demand for homes, with analysts expecting transaction activity to remain flat.

Net debt nudged up to 575m as the company spent 220m buying around 4,500 land plots.

The total average selling price on completions rose nine per cent to 180,000.

Panmure analyst Rachael Waring said: "We know that the market's been incredibly tough over the autumn, we know that volumes have been difficult to come by."

Uncertainty surrounding the Government's spending review and a decline in house prices have weighed on housebuilders' shares, which have underperformed the FTSE midcap index.

But analysts say the gloom is likely to persist until there is some sign of a pick-up in buying activity.

Numis Securities analyst Chris Millington said: "The shares are too cheap but the whole sector is going to struggle really to make ground until we actually see evidence that the spring selling season is there this year."