Taylor Wimpey
Completions last year 12,454
Housebuilding is a cyclical industry and at some stage the cycle will turn down again, but there is no sign that this will happen any time soon. The recent profit warning from Countrywide was to do with the lack of availability of stock coming on to the market. This is hardly going to affect the housebuilders, which are selling as much as they can produce.
This was apparent from trading statements from Persimmon at the start of the month and Barratt Developments last week. Now Taylor Wimpey says demand is so strong that homes are selling faster than expected and its sites are completing earlier than had been planned.
The company’s position in the market, and its lack of