STABLE market conditions ensure that York-based national house builder Persimmon is set fair for a successful second half of the year.

Impressive first half figures have been announced by the group as part of an update ahead of its half year results to June 30, 2011, which will be released on August 23.

These show that during the first six months Persimmon legally completed 4,439 homes (2010: 4,657) with sales improving from the lower sales order book at the start of the year.

And it expects to sell as many over the course of this year as were sold last year.

Turnover for the first six months of this year was about £715 million with sales rates continuing to improve through the spring selling season.

The group said: "Since our interim management statement in April the value of our private sales reservations is six per cent higher than the same period last year.

"Our order book atJune 30, 2011is now ahead of the same point last year with forward sales at about £725 million. This places us in a strong position for the second half."

New homes were being sold from 380 sites and healthy visitor levels demonstrate that underlying demand is resilient.

"We have successfully opened 70 new sites in the first half of the year and have identified a further 70 sites for sales release during the second half. Cancellation rates continue to run at a low level of about 17 per cent."

Underlying pricing remained firm. Average selling price for the first half of the year was £162,000 (2010: £168,936) reflecting the legal completion of a greater proportion of smaller house types in the period.

"However, we anticipate that our average selling price for the full year will increase as we legally complete more detached house sales already included in our forward order book," it said.

Operating margins are expected to improve from eight per cent in 2010 to nine per cent this year.

Persimmon has secured £35 million from the government to support its FirstBuy scheme to help first time buyers and so far 2,100 new Persimmon homes have been allocated support.

The statement has impressed financial analysts particularly because the below-expectation net debt of £51 million for the group last year had by June been whittled to just £15 million, in spite of having acquired 7,500 plots.

With a new five year £300 million revolving credit facility during the first half of the year combining with Persimmon's strong liquidity suggested lower future finance costs and further profit growth.