Revealed in the developer’s latest trading update, the decline was attributed to high mortgage costs dampening demand. However, the company forecasts build cost inflation to stabilise and expects “profit before tax slightly ahead of our previous expectations”. During FY24 14,004 homes were completed.

The statement said: “Although the macro backdrop remains challenging, particularly demand sensitivity to current mortgage pricing and availability, and with lower average sales outlets, we anticipate total home completions, including JVs (joint ventures), will be in a range of 13,000 to 13,500 in FY25, including c. 600 completions from our JVs.”

The company said it welcomes the new UK government’s focus on housebuilding and planning reform “as key to both unlocking economic growth and tackling the chronic undersupply of new homes”, expressing confidence in returning to growth in the following year.

Barratt is also awaiting approval for its £2.5 billion merger with Redrow, currently under investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).