Spring sales help Taylor Wimpey shine

HOUSEBUILDER Taylor Wimpey is celebrating a ‘strong spring selli ng season’ as increased mortgage lending boosts demand for new homes.

The FTSE 250 company says it has orders for 8,139 homes – up 13pc on this time last year – with the value up 33pc to £1.6bn.

Average selling prices are 22pc higher than a year ago at nearly £250,000 – with around 7pc of the increase attributed to house price inflation and the rest to building bigger homes in the South. Shares rose 3p to 110.1p. The update came as the Council of Mortgage Lenders said banks and building societies had approved £15.4bn of home loans last month – up 33pc on March last year.

The mortgage market has roared back to life in recent months as the banking system recovers and schemes such as Help to Buy encourage buyers to get on the housing ladder.

Taylor Wimpey chief executive Pete Redfern said it had sold 1,600 homes through Help to Buy since the new year and welcomed its extension from 2016 to 2020.

‘The UK housing market remains buoyant and our customers continue to benefit from a more acces- sible and affordable mortgage market,’ he said. ‘This, together with the extension of Help to Buy, has given more customers the confidence and the ability to step on to or move up the housing ladder.’

Official figures this week showed the average house price in the UK has risen 9.1pc in the past 12 months to £253,000. Prices in London are up 17.7pc to £458,000.