Housing market sentiment soars

Posted: 05 Jul 2006 10:52:37 GMT

There is new evidence today that the UK housing market is buoyant, with consumer confidence seemingly high.

In a trading statement this morning, house builder Wilson Bowden suggested that its full-year results are still in line with expectations, while there has been a distinct improvement in housing market sentiment during the last six months.

With a series of new site openings expected before Christmas, Wilson Bowden is anticipating that its full-year results will be more weighted towards the second half than last year, while the last two months have already seen notable signs of improvement.

Ending the first half of the year, the company's order book was up by 52 per cent to 2,266 units and the average selling price had risen by six per cent to around £207,000.

"There has been a noticeable improvement in sentiment in many parts of the housing market during the first half of 2006, with reservations at higher levels than in 2005," the company said in a statement.

"At this time, we continue to anticipate that our full-year performance will be in line with expectations."

Meanwhile, house builder Barratt has revealed that it will be demolishing nine disused schools in Scotland, with a view to replacing them with 1,400 homes. The £185 million project will commence next year and it is expected to have been completed by 2011.


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