Barratt’s revenue rose by 24% over the six months to the end of December, and profit was up by 15%, but forward sales have slumped.
The housebuilder said it had experienced “strong operational performance” in the first half of its financial year, but acknowledged that this was starting to turn.
The forward sales picture is less healthy. As at 29 January 2023 they stood at 10,854 homes, down from 15,736 at the same point a year before.
Barratt Developments chief executive David Thomas said: “The economic backdrop has clearly been challenging and consumer confidence weakened significantly during the half, which meant we saw lower reservation rates for future sales – particularly in the second quarter.”
He added: “While we have seen some early signs of improvement in current trading during January, we will need to see continued momentum over the coming months before we can be confident that these challenging trading conditions are easing.”
To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews
