Bovis Homes sees strong first half

The housebuilder said it completed 944 homes for the six months ended June 30 compared with 801 homes a year ago.

Average sales price during the period increased 1 per cent to £164,400. Net private reservations rose 24 per cent to 993.

The Longfield, Kent-based company said home buyers were taking longer to make their purchase decision and continued to face a challenging mortgage process.

A focus on margins is helping UK housebuilders recover their footing after several difficult years, supported by lower land prices, cost-cutting and a shift in product mix from apartments towards houses, which is lifting selling prices.

Last week, York-based housebuilder Persimmon followed other property developers by saying that market conditions had been relatively stable despite sentiment being hit by the continued weakness in the wider economy.