Taylor Wimpey home completions rise after ‘stable’ 2018
Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has said trading for the year to 31 December remains “in line with expectations” on the back of a “stable” housing market, despite ongoing political uncertainty.
Total home completions, including joint ventures, grew by 3% to 14,947 during the 12 months.
Average selling prices on private completions increased by 2% to £301,000, with the overall average selling price remaining flat at £264,000.
Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has said trading for the year to 31 December remains “in line with expectations” on the back of a “stable” housing market, despite ongoing political uncertainty.
Total home completions, including joint ventures, grew by 3% to 14,947 during the 12 months.
Average selling prices on private completions increased by 2% to £301,000, with the overall average selling price remaining flat at £264,000.
The housebuilder said trading was “robust despite, as previously reported, seeing some signs of increasing customer caution towards the end of 2018 in London and the South East”.
However, it also expects to include a one-off cost of around £15m-£20m in relation to pension scheme liabilities.
Taylor Wimpey ended the year with an order book valued at £1.8bn, up from £1.6bn in the previous year.
Chief executive Pete Redfern said: “Despite wider macroeconomic uncertainty, the housing market remained stable during 2018 and we had a good trading performance.
“As we enter 2019, we maintain our guidance for stable volumes although are mindful of market sensitivity.”
The business said it was too early to give a definitive view on its possible performance in 2019, but reaffirmed its commitment to returning £600m to shareholders through its total dividend this year.
It will announce its full-year results for 2018 on 27 February.
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