Tulloch Homes offers upbeat outlook for housing market as turnover creeps higher

Housebuilder Tulloch Homes has reported a steady rise in full-year turnover as it forecast a “relatively stable” market over the coming year.

George Fraser, chief executive of Tulloch Homes, pictured at one of its housing developments. Picture: Contributed

The Inverness-based group, whose activities are chiefly focused on the Highlands, with additional development sites in Aberdeen and the Central Belt, booked turnover of £51.1 million for the year to the end of June, up 2.4 per cent on the previous year’s £49.9m.

Pre-tax profits came in at £8.8m, down from £12m, though last year’s haul had been boosted by the sale of a commercial site in Inverness together with a pension refund and other provisions released, leading to a one-off gain of £3.5m.

The firm has 1,320 units with planning consent, up from 1,237 last year, and a further 474 units are contracted in the Highlands. At the end of June 2019, Tulloch had net assets amounting to £60.2m, a year-on-year increase of 16.4 per cent.

Chief executive George Fraser said: “We are very happy with the strong financial performance of the business over the last 12 months. The figures both in this period and over the last number of terms is a result of hard work from all our dedicated employees and wider supply chain, together with a quality landbank acquired over many years.

“We continue to require the acquisition of land as the raw material and precursor to the development and sale of private housing and that is an ongoing process.

“Looking forward, we expect the housing market to remain relatively stable throughout the coming year and as a result anticipate unit numbers and volumes to be consistent with the current year.”

Prosperity

He added: “We’re proud to be a company that contributes to local prosperity, employing 158 people mainly in the Highlands, and supporting over 600 jobs when our regular sub-contractors are taken into account.

“Inverness, one of the UK’s fastest-growing cities, continues to sustain a strong demand for new housing, and developments like the dualling of the A9 from Perth and the A96 from Aberdeen mean this growth is likely to continue.”

This summer saw the ground-breaking ceremony at Tulloch Homes’ latest development at Ness Side, adjoining the West Link Road in Inverness.

The £90m development of 757 homes, including 200 affordable units, on a 35-acre location is the company’s largest-ever investment, creating and guaranteeing local construction jobs and sub-contractor employment for up to 20 years, Tulloch noted.