Vistry eyes second-half affordable homes work surge

Vistry is predicting a surge in new contracts in the second half of the year after reporting a solid first-half performance.

In a first-half trading statement this morning, the partnership homes builder said expected first-half pre-tax profit of around £80m (H1 24: £121m), in line with expectations.

Vistry said it was already starting to seeing early market improvement following the recent Government affordable homes spending commitments, and had secured a forward order book worth £4.3bn.

Chief executive Greg Fitzgerald said: “We have worked closely with our partners, identifying a strong pipeline of development opportunities, and expect the funding and other important initiatives to support a significant step up in new contracts with our affordable housing partners in H2 2025, with strong momentum going into 2026.”

Affordable housing deals made up around 73% of completions in the first half, and while delivery dipped to 6,800 homes (down from 7,792), Vistry said its strategic pivot to capital-light partnerships and long-term alliances with housing providers looked set to pay off.

The group said its net debt had come in better than expected at around £295m – down from £322m the same time last year. It also successfully refinanced its £900m debt facilities out to April 2028 with no changes to terms or lenders.

The firm has already completed £57m of its £130m share buyback and is targeting an uptick in land buying in the second half after securing 3,113 plots across 14 sites in H1.

Fitzgerald added: “We are looking forward to playing a key role in the delivery of this new Affordable Homes Programme and, in doing so, supporting the Board’s long-term value creation strategy.”