About time25 Feb 2019 09:25
It really is about time the Government did something to reign in these Developers. It's not limited to just persimmon - the whole industry laughs at the idea of corporate social responsibility. Whilst this is obviously not good news for holders, for the industry as a whole and for the consumer hopefully, this can make a change for the better.
Also, 7% down is nothing compared to if help to buy is actually pulled, note a statement from the 2017 annual report.
"Any restrictions in the availability or affordability of mortgages for customers could reduce demand for new homes and affect revenues, profits and cash flows. Early withdrawal of the Government sponsored Help to Buy scheme is
likely to impact on the availability of associated mortgage lending and could reduce demand for new homes from first time buyers,impacting revenues, profits, and cash flows." - Identified as High Risk.
Note recent headlines stating that first time buyers are now the leading demographic applying for mortgages.
Further from 2017 annual report
"During 2017 we sold 7,682 new homes to customers who have secured a Help to Buy mortgage with
6,525 new homes sold in England, and 1,157 in Wales and Scotland. "
There is nothing that can replace these Help to buy purchases - note that most lenders will mortgage up to circa 80% LTV which completely wipes out 1000s of purchases (some buyers just used help to buy when they could afford to buy it anyway, but hey, the government love to give out free money to the wealthy)
This has been reported everywhere, not just the daily mail. If it is pulled this will be 40%+ down in no time. SELL