Barratt warns of ‘marked slowdown’ in housing market
Barratt Developments has warned of a “marked slowdown” in the UK housing market over the past six months. The company told shareholders yesterday that it has “significantly” cut back on purchasing land in response to the backdrop, and has suspended recruitment of new employees. Chief executive David Thomas said: “The first half of the financial year has seen a marked slowdown in the UK housing market. Political and economic uncertainty impacted the first quarter; this was then compounded by rapid and significant changes in mortgage rates
which reduced affordability, homebuyer confidence and reservation activity through the second quarter.”