Housebuilder CALA Group is reporting it should deliver record revenues and profits this year, after its first year of significant volume growth.
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The Edinburgh-based group says it is already 90% sold for the 2015 financial year to June 30, and has already begun selling into the following year. CALA claims that, due to its “premium market positioning,” only 6% of reservations over this period were achieved with assistance from the Government’s Help to Buy scheme.
Average sale prices for the firm are now at £537,000, up 27% from £423,000 in the year to 30 June 2014.
Planning permission has also been granted on 33 sites, for a total of 938 plots, with a potential gross development (GDV) value of £417million. This is in addition to 38 new sites, or 1,478 plots, contracted during the previous eight month period, with a GDV of £564million and a gross margin in excess of 23%.
CALA’s controlled land bank now stands at over 13,400 plots, which have a potential GDV of £5billion.
2015 is set to be the first year of significant volume growth for the company, following the implementation of new plans unveiled in 2014. The group says its expansion plans were also accelerated by the acquisition of Banner Homes in March 2014, which position CALA in the top 10 of UK home builders by revenue.
With the firm now operating as one integrated team from eight regional divisions across the country, the company’s board says it is confident the Group will achieve its growth plans and operational efficiency targets on schedule.
Alan Brown, Chief Executive of CALA Group, said: “After an encouraging first half, trading since the start of 2015 has been ahead of expectation.
“We have seen increased site visitor numbers across our eight operating regions alongside a significant increase in online enquiries since the launch of our new website in December, as the improved availability of record low mortgage rates, combined with the strength of the UK economy and ongoing shortage of housing supply, continue to boost demand.
“We are continuing to see a sustainable level of sales price inflation across all of our regions while our land teams continue to secure a steady supply of high quality sites in desirable locations at or above our target hurdle rates, providing confidence that we can grow our future volumes substantially.
“Overall, the Group has started the current year with strong momentum and we are well placed to deliver our first year of significant volume uplift as part of the Group’s ongoing growth strategy.”
