Housebuilder and landlord Aster Group has announced record profits in its last financial year as it delivers on plans to build thousands of new homes across the south of England.
Pre-tax profit increased by 29% to £44m in the year to the end of March 2017 on revenues up 7% to a record £191m. The group continues to focus on operating effectively to grow profits so it can deliver more and different types of housing.
Aster has boosted its development rate by 15% this year, delivering 829 homes for affordable rent, shared ownership and open market sale. This is over 100 more homes than the business built during 2016 (724 homes).
As part of its plan to invest £1.5bn in its development programme between now and 2024, Aster is increasingly focusing on land-led schemes, alongside homes delivered with other housebuilders. The group completed 83 homes on land-led schemes in 2016/17, including developments in Weymouth, Southampton and Landrake, Cornwall.
Some properties are built as part of its joint venture with FTSE 250 developer Galliford Try and the group is continuing to invest in shared ownership, with 312 homes delivered last year.
Recently, Aster has expanded into Oxfordshire and has plans to develop in other areas close to London. It expects to complete over 1,000 homes during the current financial year, including schemes in Plymouth, Devizes and Walton in Somerset.
Bjorn Howard, group CEO of Aster, said: “We remain focused on operating effectively so we can continue to grow our profit pool. This allows us to build more homes and underpins our ambitious £1.5bn development plan over the next seven years.
“We also look for alternative ways to tackle the housing crisis, like our shared ownership development programme. We believe this product has a key role to play in helping hundreds of thousands of people currently trapped in ‘generation rent’.”
