Upbeat housebuilder Persimmon eyes a sales lift from Night Tube

Persimmon is expecting a boost in sales from the arrival of the Night Tube, the boss of the housebuilder said as he revealed that demand has held up following the Brexit vote.

Jeff Fairburn added: “The Night Tube will be beneficial for us and make a number of our residential schemes more attractive.”

He said Persimmon’s properties in Uxbridge and Harrow could now be perceived as easier to get home to from central London late at night as the service expands.

It will mark a further boost to the group, which has seen “robust” customer interest since the June referendum despite some concerns that the housing market could cool following the result.

Mortgage funding remains at “compelling levels”, the company said, and its private-sale reservations since July 1 is 17% ahead of the same period last year.

Pre-tax profits jumped 29% to £352.3 million in the half year to June 30, with sales up 12% to almost £1.5 billion.

Investors welcomed the update as shares in housebuilders across the market rose.

Persimmon gained 78p, or 4.3%, to 1872p.

Analysts at Peel Hunt said: “The outlook statement is by far the most confident we have seen from the housebuilding sector since the referendum.”