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Barratt Redrow blamed interest rates and a shortage of international buyers as it reported a lower than expected number of house sales for its last financial year, sending shares in the UK group sliding by more than 10 per cent on Tuesday morning.
The company, one of Britain’s biggest housebuilders, said it had sold 16,565 homes in the 12 months to the end of June, falling short of its April guidance of between 16,800 and 17,200.
The company said the shortfall was “mainly due to the impact of fewer international and investor completions than expected” in its London business. Demand had also been affected by consumer caution and mortgage rates not falling as quickly as anticipated, it added.
On a call with analysts, chief executive David Thomas pointed to affordability problems in London that had caused “substantially reduced first-time buyer numbers”.
Thomas said the company was looking at ways to attract buyers to the market, such as with rent-before-you-buy programmes, deposit-matching and a new shared equity product.
Despite the challenges, Barratt intends to build 22,000 homes a year in the medium term and expects to sell between 17,200 and 17,800 homes in its 2026 fiscal year.
Shares fell more than 10 per cent in early trading but recovered slightly to trade 7.6 per cent lower later in the morning.
