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Large house builder reveals 18% drop in affordable home sales
Taylor Wimpey has reported that the number of affordable homes it sold last year fell nearly a fifth amid “difficult market conditions”.
The FTSE 100 firm said it sold 2,388 affordable homes in the year to the end of December 2023, compared with 2,920 the year before.
Affordable tenures accounted for 23% of the group’s overall sales, compared with 21% in 2022.
Taylor Wimpey did not disclose what it defined as ‘affordable’ tenures.
However, a 2019 document said the “majority of its developments had affordable homes, including social rent, affordable rent, shared ownership and discount market sale”.
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The Buckinghamshire-based firm is part of for-profit provider Sage Homes’ Home Stepper shared ownership scheme.
Overall sale completions in the UK, including all tenures and joint ventures, fell by 24% to 10,438, the Taylor Wimpey said in a trading update last week.
Jennie Daly, chief executive of Taylor Wimpey, said: “Despite the difficult market conditions throughout the year, we maintained a sharp operational focus and delivered a good performance.”
It comes as Persimmon last week reported an 17% drop in annual sales to housing associations.
In the wider market, big house builders have been feeling the impact of lower demand as interest rates remain relatively high.
But some positive signs have emerged this month as many major lenders have started to cut their interest rates.
Ms Daly added: “Looking ahead, it is encouraging to see a reduction in mortgage rates, however, in the short term the market remains uncertain and the planning backdrop extremely challenging.”
Taylor Wimpey said it still expects its full-year group operating profit to be at the top end of its guidance of £440m to £470m.
The update came ahead of the firm’s full-year results announcement on 28 February.
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