Persimmon Homes Anglia, which operates new homes developments throughout Norfolk and Suffolk, has announced strong performance in the first half of 2012 and says demand in the region for new property remains high.

Managing director Andrew Fuller says the company has made an excellent start to 2012 with underlying profit before tax up 65 per cent on last year at £98.7m (2011: £59.7m) and legal completions in the UK up six per cent to 4,712 (2011: 4,439).

He said: “The start to the year has been extremely promising, with weekly private sales reservations up 18 per cent. We are working hard to deliver new homes to people in the region, whether this is private housing through our brands Persimmon Homes and Charles Church or affordable homes through Westbury Partnerships.

“In the coming weeks and months we will open new developments in Cringleford, Ipswich, Hoveton and Central Norwich and have already welcomed hundreds of visitors to our new show homes at the Hazelmead and Meadow View sites in Diss, Becket’s Grove and Oaklands in Wymondham, and Weaver’s Meadow in Hadleigh.

“Although the UK housing market remains constrained by the reduced availability of mortgage credit, we are confident that schemes like the Government-backed five per cent deposit mortgage product NewBuy, now with new lower rates, should help affordability for our local house buyers.”

Part exchange has been extremely popular for Persimmon in the first six months of the year with over 20 per cent of private sale customers using the incentive in the challenging market.

Fuller said: “Our objective is to continue to find good land opportunities locally to ensure we continue to build much needed housing. We want to work closely with local communities to deliver excellent new sites from our strategic land bank in line with the requirements of the new National Planning Policy Framework.”

• PHOTOGRAPH SHOWS: Andrew Fuller, managing director of Persimmon Homes Anglia.