MACTAGGART & Mickel has received a major boost to its ambitions for geographical expansion after securing planning permission for its first housing development in England.
The historic housebuilder has been given the green light to build 62 homes in Milton under Wychwood, Oxfordshire, having been given outline planning consent from the local authority.
The boost comes nearly a decade after the family-owned company, which was established in Glasgow in 1925, acquired its first land for potential development south of the Border.
Mactaggart & Mickel has amassed a land bank of more than 1,200 acres across the north-west and south -west of England since 2008. It has a further 250 acres under offer, with Oxfordshire the initial focus of its investment plans - the company plans to submit a planning application to build on a second site in the area, at East Challow, in the coming weeks.
The developments come after the leadership of the company passed into the hands of fourth generation family members, and cousins, Andrew and Ross Mickel. This followed the recent retirement of Bruce Mickel, who had been at the head of the business for more than 40 years.
Andrew Mickel, group director at Mactaggart & Mickel, said: “It’s an exciting time for Mactaggart & Mickel Homes England Ltd as we begin our long term ambition to expand and grow the company in front of a UK wide audience.
“Our English strategic land business has been very successful in identifying and promoting viable sites, so building our own housing developments south of the border is the next natural step.”
Mactaggart & Mickel has set out its ambitions amid a buoyant period for major UK housebuilders. A series of builders have reported strong trading results this year, boosted by historically-low interest rates and strong mortgage availability – despite real wage growth failing to keep pace with inflation and concerns over the Brexit vote.
Highlighting the appetite among investors for the sector, Edinburgh-based Miller was recently acquired by the private equity firm Bridgepoint in a £655 million deal. The takeover, which put a multi-million valuation on the holdings of the founding Miller family, came five years after Blackstone took control of the company after the credit crunch sparked a downturn in the market.
Earlier this month, Cala was at the centre of speculation that it was in talks with potential buyers after a £700m sale to Chinese property group Evergrande broke down.
Mr Mickel said the market in Scotland remains “very resilient”, and signalled it continues to invest in land for building homes north of the Border. It will soon begin building on sites in Haddington, Newton Mearns and Killearn.
On recent criticism of proposed reforms to the planning system south the Border, he added: “We continue to monitor the market and external factors to ensure our business is resilient to withstand any changes to market conditions. The planning system remains a challenge throughout the UK but the fact there is an aspiration to be improved and reviewed is positive. Anything that can be done to speed up the system is welcome.”
The most recent results for Mactaggart & Mickel Homes show the company increased profits by 7.1 per cent to £13.7 million in 2016. Turnover grew by 13.4 per cent to £55m.
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