Sales at regional sites give Bellway’s profits a boost

The company said the current year had started strongly after pre-tax profits for the year to July 31 rose to £140.9m from £105.3m, on an 11 per cent increase in revenues to £1.1bn.

The group said that since the end of July, reservations have stayed ahead of last year and demand remains strong in most areas of the country.

Bellway currently has 10 developments in Yorkshire including Meadowfields in Boroughbridge and The Limes in Leeds.

It said that visitor numbers to these sites have risen, while sales have exceeded expectations.

It added that a significant reason for the outperformance was the new Government schemes designed to energise the housing market.

Ross Clarkson, Bellway’s Yorkshire regional sales manager, said: “Both NewBuy and Help to Buy have had a real impact.

“Visitor numbers across our UK developments are up by 27 per cent from 101 per week in 2012 to 128 in the year to July 31, while we have taken 830 reservations using Help to Buy in the four months since the first phase was introduced on April 1.”

Help to Buy allows people to buy homes with a small five per cent deposit.

Bellway sold 5,652 homes over the year – an 8.2 per cent increase on the previous year.

The average selling price of its homes increased by 3.4 per cent to £193,000.

As well as the 10 developments Bellway is currently trading in Yorkshire, work is planned to begin on new developments in Burley-in-Wharfedale, Queensbury, and Penistone over the next six months.

Bellway’s chairman John Watson said: “More favourable mortgage conditions, a gradual improvement in consumer confidence, together with a continuing programme of site openings, have allowed the group to deliver its fourth consecutive year of earnings growth.”