Persimmon has announced its full-year results for 2024, recording an increase in completions, profits and outlets over the previous year.
For the year ending December 31 2024, Persimmon saw its completions rise by 7% on 2023, up to 10,664 homes. The period saw a higher proportion of private sales than the previous year, up 18% to 9,075. Persimmon said that this reflected a “more typical completion mix” compared to 2023 where a challenging market saw a higher proportion of affordable homes delivered.
The housebuilder’s average private selling price also increased year-on-year, rising to £287,162 from £285,774, as did its net private sales rate which reached 0.70 per outlet per week in 2024 compared to 0.58 in 2023. Excluding bulk sales, this figure was 0.57 up from 0.50 in 2023. The developer said that the increase was a result of website traffic and enquiries growing by a third and a quarter respectively year-on-year.
Persimmon’s pre-tax profit increased to £395.1million for the financial year, a growth of 10%, while its underlying operating profit rose by 14% to £405.2million. The developer’s selling outlets also increased, recording 270 at the end of the financial year, rising by 5% year-on-year.
The housebuilder said that it was targeting between 11,000 and 11,500 in 2025.
Dean Finch, CEO of Persimmon, said: “Persimmon’s disciplined investment and significant operational improvements in recent years have created a stronger business. This is demonstrated by our growth in 2024.”
“The underlying market fundamentals remain strong and we are encouraged by the further improvement in our sales rates in the early weeks of this year. The government’s welcome planning reforms and pro-housebuilding agenda demands more of the high-quality, affordable homes which are Persimmon’s core strength, providing a positive tailwind.”
“With our strong platform in place, we are targeting further growth this year and are confident the business will grow margins, returns and shareholder value over the medium term.”
Chairman of Persimmon, Roger Devlin, said that recent planning reforms from the government were creating a “positive tailwind” in terms of supply which was helping the housebuilder progress towards its goal of “at least” 300 outlets.
Persimmon said that 2025 had started positively, with its private sales position up 27% year-on-year and a 14% increase in its net private sales rate.
