Construction firm bounces back from election lull

CONSTRUCTION firm Persimmon has bucked the trend which is crippling its contemporaries and is doing well as the housebuilding sector recovers.

The average selling price for the group increased by 4% to c. £195,000 up from £186,970 in 2014, whilst others firms such as Southdale and Hewletts have not fared so well this year.

A speed-bump was the General Election, but the firm managed to opened 122 new sites in the first half of the year, despite experiencing a slowdown in the planning application process during the run-up.

In April, the firm reported that forward sales revenue had reached £2bn.

Total revenues for the half-year have increased to £1.34bn on £1.2bn the year before.

New home legal completions increased by to 6,855 units, up from 6,408 in the first half of 2014.

In a statement Persimmon said: “Customer sentiment remained resilient through the period running up to the General Election on 7 May and confidence has improved subsequently.

“We continue to actively develop all sites where we have an implementable detailed planning consent and plan to open a further c.125 new sites during the second half of the year.”