Persimmon steps up output as recovery gathers more steam

Persimmon said that since July it has seen a 20% rise in visitor levels to its sites, compared with last year, and the upturn in sales seen in the summer had continued into autumn.

It has also speeded up its building rate.

“We are fully sold up for the current year and have £650m forward sales reserved beyond 2013, a 41% increase on the comparable prior year position,” the company said in a trading statement this morning.

Persimmon has a national network of 385 sites and anticipates that this will rise to 400 outlets by the end of the year.

Since 1 July 2013, it has acquired approximately 6,000 new plots of land, of which about 1,300 have been converted from the strategic land bank.

In response to the improvement in sales the company has increased its build rate.  Using prefabricated timber frames is enabling Persimmon to respond quickly to the upturn and help control site costs, the company said. Output of timber frames from its Space4 factory is anticipated to increase by 25% during 2013. 

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