Housebuilder Persimmon has announced a rise in profits by 13 percent for the first half of the year.
In the six month to June 30, pre-tax profits increased from £457 million to £516 million. The group is expecting further growth for the second half of 2018.
Persimmon chief executive, Jeff Fairburn, said: “We have continued to experience good levels of customer interest in our housing development sites as we trade through the quieter summer season.”
“Customers are continuing to benefit from a competitive mortgage market and confidence remains resilient based on healthy employment trends and low-interest rates,” he added.
The group has sold 8,072 new homes in the first half of t2018, which is an increase of four percent.
The average selling price grew by one percent, to £215,813.
Laith Khalaf, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said that Persimmon is “still heading in the right direction” but there is risk that the UK is reaching the end of its housing boom.
“The future is not looking quite as rosy as the recent past, with house price growth moderating and sales not as buoyant as they were,” he said.
“A further worry is the help-to-buy scheme, which has been a lynchpin in the UK housing market. While this still has three years left to run, all eyes will be on the budget this autumn to see if the chancellor intends to extend the scheme in some way.”
Earlier this year, shareholders were angered after Fairburn was given a £75 million bonus. A recent report published by the High Pay Centre revealed Persimmon’s chief executive was the highest paid FTSE 100 boss in 2017. He was paid £47.1 million.
Shares in the group (LON: PSN) are currently trading up 1.19 percent at 2.473,00 (0918GMT).
