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UK homebuilder Vistry has forecast profit for 2025 below market expectations after reporting a decline in home sales amid continued uncertainty in the housing market. The company said softer demand from private buyers and delays in partner-funded housing deals affected performance, while forward sales also declined year on year. Although revenue remained broadly flat, sales volumes fell and investor sentiment weakened, leading to a sharp drop in the company's share price. Vistry said government-backed affordable housing programmes continued to support activity, but affordability pressures and fiscal uncertainty limited private market recovery. The company expects future opportunities from long-term government housing initiatives, while remaining cautious on near-term conditions.
British homebuilder Vistry has forecast profit for 2025 below market expectations after reporting a fall in home sales, as uncertainty continued to weigh on demand from private buyers and the outlook for social housing contracts. The update was issued earlier this week alongside a trading and outlook statement. Advertisement
Vistry said home sales declined by 9 per cent during 2025, reflecting weaker conditions in the private housing market and delays in some partnership-led developments. The company sold around 15,700 homes during the year, compared with 17,225 units in the previous year. Revenue stood at about GBP 4.2 billion, remaining broadly flat year on year.
The Kent-based builder reported that its forward sales position at the start of 2026 was approximately GBP 4 billion, down from GBP 4.4 billion a year earlier. The reduction was attributed to softer private housing demand and slower progression of certain partner-funded transactions.
Vistry generates the majority of its sales through partnerships with local authorities, housing associations and government-backed providers. The company said government measures aimed at supporting affordable housing, including multi-billion-pound investments to increase supply and encourage new partnership contracts, continued to underpin activity. However, ongoing affordability pressures and uncertainty surrounding the recent budget period resulted in many private buyers remaining cautious.
Chief executive Greg Fitzgerald said that uncertainty in the private housing market, combined with fiscal concerns, had delayed the timing of some partner-funded deals. Despite this, he noted that the company remains positioned to benefit from longer-term policy support.
Looking ahead, Vistry expects to gain from the government's 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, which provides grant funding to support the delivery of new social and affordable housing. The company said bids under the programme are expected in the first half of the year, with early allocations likely by mid-year or early in the third quarter.
Vistry said it expects adjusted profit before tax of around GBP 270 million when it reports its full-year results, below analysts expectations of about GBP 272.6 million. The company said it is cautiously optimistic about the impact of lower interest rates on private buyer demand and expects performance to be weighted towards the second half of the year, though less sharply than previously.
Shares in Vistry fell by more than 5 per cent, making it one of the weakest performers on the FTSE mid-cap index during early trading.
Source - Reuters
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