The housebuilder Crest Nicholson has warned of job cuts and worse than expected profits after a summer of “subdued” sales amid uncertainty around the possible property taxes in the budget.
The Surrey-based company said it planned to close one divisional office and cut 50 roles, including staff at that site and “selective other roles” across the business.
Crest said its adjusted profit before tax for the year to 31 October would be at the low end or slightly below the previous estimated range of £28m to £38m, “reflecting a housing market that has remained subdued through the summer, and the continued uncertainty surrounding government tax policy ahead of the forthcoming budget” on 26 November.
It cautioned that near-term market conditions were likely to remain challenging.
Anthony Codling, a housing analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said budget uncertainty had “wiped out the autumn selling season, a critical period for Crest with an October year-end”.
The late timing of the budget has led to a long period of speculation around changes to stamp duty, as well as potential income tax rises and a new mansion tax.
Rival housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has also reported a drop in sales in the vital autumn period, and the London estate agent Foxtons has taken a hit as potential buyers are holding back purchases.
Jennie Daly, the Taylor Wimpey chief executive, has urged the government to announce more support for first-time buyers to revive the cooling property market.
Crest said it had completed 1,691 homes in the past financial year, at the lower end of its range of 1,700 to 1,900 homes, including 35% affordable units.
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Its weekly rate of open-market sales for each site was 0.51 for the year, compared with 0.48 in 2024, although the rate declined to 0.45 in the last quarter of its financial year.
Crest has sold five land parcels from larger sites as it trims its landbank, and is working on a new house type range.
“Crest is in the early stages of a multi-year turnaround plan,” Codling said. “Turnarounds are very rarely linear, and we believe that overall they are on the right trajectory (right-sizing the landbank and right-sizing the business), and the current headwinds could become tailwinds as the government continues to look for ways to stimulate new housing supply.”
