One of the UK’s biggest housebuilders has warned profits will be lower this year, citing “softer pricing” and continuing cost inflation.
Taylor Wimpey has signalled to the stock market that it expects to report an adjusted operating profit around £400 million for 2026, down from the £420.6m reported by the company today for 2025.
Although the company said the spring season is "progressing well" and there continues to be “good mortgage availability at competitive rates”, it entered 2026 with a “slightly lower order book”. It stated that affordability continues to be challenging for first-time buyers, particularly in the south of England.
The company highlighted the impact that arose from the uncertainty preceding the Autumn Budget in November, which saw fevered media speculation over the tax and spending plans Chancellor Rachel Reeves would announce.
Looking ahead, analysts have raised the risk of inflation rising in the coming months amid the fall-out from the unfolding conflict in the Middle East, which may dimmish the prospect of interest rate cuts.
Taylor Wimpey said its total order book excluding joint ventures stood at a "slightly lower" £2.182 billion, excluding joint ventures, on March 1, compared with £2.283bn at the same stage last year, and comprised 7,678 homes, down from 8,097. And it flagged that the net private sales rate in the year to date was running marginally behind last year’s, at 0.74 per outlet per week in the week ending March 1 compared with 0.76 last year.
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The company reported UK home completions, excluding joint ventures, of 10,614 in 2025, up from 9,972, with the average selling price on UK private completions edging up to £374,000 from £356,000.
Revenue increased by 13% to £3.84bn.
The company's statutory profit before tax was down 54.3% at £146.5m after it increased provisions for remediation work that may be required to improve the fire safety of the cladding on apartment blocks it has built over the last two decades.
This year it expects UK completions this year to be in the region of 10,600 to 11,000, excluding joint ventures.
Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Taylor Wimpey built momentum in 2025, with most key figures heading in the right direction. There was a bit of a pullback in the second half, as many buyers chose to hold off from signing on the dotted line for a new home ahead of the later-than-usual UK Budget, in hopes of more favourable tax changes. With that cloud of uncertainty now out of the way, focus returns to buyer demand and affordability, and the Spring selling season has started well.”
However, Mr Chiekrie warned: “Despite the recent momentum, the outlook for the whole of 2026 is where Taylor Wimpey left investors wanting more. Progress is expected to slow this year due to a downward trend in selling prices on the order book and continued low single-digit cost inflation. That means margins are now expected to narrow, and as a result, underlying operating profits are expected to fall from £421m to around £400m in 2026.
“While that’s not what investors were hoping for, the bigger picture needs to be kept in mind. The long-term demand outlook remains favourable, and Taylor Wimpey’s valuation could offer some upside to patient investors.”
Jennie Daly, chief executive at Taylor Wimpey, said: "We delivered a robust performance in 2025, with completions up 6% and results in line with guidance - testament to the hard work and commitment of our teams in delivering the Group's strategy against a challenging market backdrop.
“The Spring selling season is progressing well, with encouraging levels of customer interest reflecting the quality of our sites and locations. We are also driving growth in outlets through improved planning outcomes and the consistent and proactive approach of our teams, which will support our growth ambitions.
“Taylor Wimpey is a strong and agile business with highly experienced teams, and we are well positioned to generate value from our high-quality, well located landbank. Against a backdrop of continuing market uncertainty and more recent geopolitical events, we remain focussed on delivering our strategy set out at our recent Investor and Analyst event in October. This is progressing well and the actions we are taking give us confidence in our ability to deliver profitable growth and maximise shareholder returns over the medium term.”
The company proposed a cut in the final dividend to 2.95p per ordinary share, down from 4.66p last year, yielding a total dividend of 7.62p per share, down from 9.46p. At the same time, it announced plans to commence a share buyback worth £52m.
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