Private housing completions on the up but social housing falls as Barratt changes product mix

Developer Barratt has increased total completions by almost 3% over the last six months, the company said in a trading update today.

Total completions for the six months to 31 December rose by 2.9% to 7,206, compared with 7,003 for the same period in 2005. The average selling price also rose to £165,000 from £162,900.

As a result of mix changes at the company, social housing completions decreased by 1.3% while private completions rose by 4%.

In a statement, Barratt said: “While the competitiveness of the market and changes to our product mix constrained average selling price growth, our continued focus on driving improved overhead efficiencies through increased scale, and strict control of build costs, should enable us to deliver a robust operating margin in the first half, with pre-tax profits in line with market expectations.”