Bellway cites lower mortgage rates, improved confidence as H1 profits grow

(Sharecast News) - Housebuilder Bellway hailed a "strong" first half on Tuesday as it posted a 12% increase in underlying pre-tax profit, citing lower mortgage interest rates and improved consumer confidence. In the six months to the end of January 2025, underlying pre-tax profit rose to £150.2m from £134.2m in the same period a year earlier. Revenue was up 12.3% to £1.4bn and housing completions increased 11.9% to 4,577.

The average selling price was £310,581, up from £309,278 a year earlier and the private reservation rate per outlet per week picked up 18.6% to 0.51.

Bellway said trading was ahead of the comparative period, "driven by lower mortgage interest rates and an improvement in consumer confidence".

The housebuilder said that while it did not experience a typical seasonal step-up in reservations in autumn, trading was stable and followed by a notable increase in January 2025.

"Customer demand was further supported by good availability of mortgage finance, although affordability remains relatively constrained for those customers requiring higher loan-to-value mortgages," it said.

Chief executive Jason Honeyman said: "Bellway has delivered a strong first half performance with good growth in volume output and profits. Underlying demand for our homes is healthy and we have been encouraged by the improvement in customer enquiries and reservations since the start of the new calendar year."

He said the company was on track to deliver volume output of at least 8,500 homes in the full year, versus 7,654 at the end of July 2024, and that it currently expects to build the order book through the second half to support further growth in 2026.