Taylor Wimpey reports small rise in house prices

Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has announced a slight rise in prices paid for new housing.

In a trading update ahead of its half year results, the company said it expects to complete around 4,650 homes in the UK in the first half of the year, down from 4,702 in 2009.

The average selling price of a home is £167,000 compared with £153,000 for the same period last year.

The firm says the underlying shortfall of new-build housing and the strong levels of demand will continue to underpin pricing in the UK housing market. However, in the short term, with ongoing political and economic uncertainty, it will continue to run the business on a cautious basis, with selective land investment and an ongoing focus on costs and cash.

In the medium term the firm says it remains concerned about future spending reviews that could impact on housing initiatives, particularly the level of Social Housing Grant.

In the US the prices for new housing remains stable and in line with the same period for 2009 while the Canadian business continues to perform strongly.