HAs still bidding on Section 106 at Persimmon as it writes off £25m investment in modular house builder TopHat

Its buoyant statement comes at a time when some major landlords have warned they could stop buying Section 106 homes because of financial pressures.

At the same time, the firm has written off its £25m investment in TopHat. Persimmon told the stock market: “We originally invested in the TopHat business because of its industry-leading facade product.

“While the broader market challenges for volumetric modular manufacture has led us to take the prudent decision to write down our original investment, we continue to work with TopHat as they reposition the business to focus on the facade product.”

Inside Housing reported earlier this week how another major developer has lodged a High Court winding-up petition against the modular house builder.

Yorkshire-based Harworth, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange, has submitted the petition over a claim that it is a creditor of the Goldman Sachs-backed firm.

A hearing is due to take place at the High Court’s Business and Property Courts division in Leeds on 13 August.

Persimmon’s new housing revenue stood at £1.17bn as it delivered 4,445 homes in the reported period.

Its gross profit increased more than £20m to £258.4m, which included a £23m charge in relation to the cost of removing combustible cladding, as well as other fire-related remediation works.

Persimmon’s margin and operating profit were both flat on the previous year, at 13% and £152.2m, respectively.

Mr Finch added: “Strengthening consumer sentiment, improving macro-economic conditions and the government’s welcome and ambitious planning reforms that demand more of the high-quality, affordable homes that are Persimmon’s core strength, are all supportive of our ambition to grow this year and in the future.

“We are opening more sites this year and will do the same next year, demonstrating the benefit of our continued land investment in recent years. This growing and strong platform means we are ready to deliver more of the homes our country requires while securing industry-leading returns over the medium term.”

Concern about house building this week led one lobby group to ask the Greater London Authority to consider launching an institutional investor-backed fund to acquire “stranded” Section 106 homes to prevent major developments stalling.

BusinessLDN, which represents around 160 organisations in the capital, has written to the city’s MPs, council leaders and assembly members, warning of a Section 106 “logjam” because traditional housing associations’ appetite for new homes was waning.