But turnover falls due to market “challenges” and pre-Budget uncertainty, says housebuidling giant
Greg Fitzgerald has announced he will retire as chair of housebuilding giant Vistry in May and then step down as chief executive within 12 months.
Fitzgerald is standing down after 40 years in housebuilding in which he founded Midas Homes and later led Galliford Try Homes as chief executive, growing its turnover from £600m to £2.4bn.
He joined Bovis Homes in 2017 before it acquired Galliford Try’s Linden Homes business in 2020 to create Vistry Homes.
Under Fitzgerald’s leadership Vistry has moved towards an affordable housing partnerships model and grown to become the second largest housebuilder in the UK in turnover last year, according to Building’sTop 150 Contractors & Housebuilders List.
But shareholders voiced concern about Fitzgerald’s appointment in 2024 as executive chair in addition to his chief executive role, which was a departure from the UK Corporate Governance Code.
Vistry today confirmed the chair and executive chair roles will once again be separated. A search for a new CEO will start immediately and Fitzgerald will stay on for 12 months or until a successor is appointed.
Fitzgerald’s announcement came as Vistry published its 2025 results this morning.
The firm announced it has met its expectations for adjusted profit excluding exceptional items, which was £268.8m, up from £263.5m. Pre-tax profit increased 87% from £104.9m to £196.2m. This was primarily due to lower exceptional costs with building safety charges falling from £114.7m to £8m and a £6m drop in restructuring costs. This was offset by a £12.8m charge for commitments made as part of the agreement with the Competition Markets Authority after the latter dropped its investigation into alleged anti-competitive behaviour by Vistry and six other firms.
However, its turnover including 100% of joint venture income fell from £4.3bn to £4.2bn. The group said this reflect “reflected continued challenges in the open market, and the uncertainty related to the November Budget which also delayed the timing of some partner-funded deals”.
The group’s statutory turnover from the open market fell from £1.3bn to £1.1bn while income from partner-funded deals – meaning homes funded by housing associations, local authorities, or build-to-rent investors – also dropped from £2.3bn to £2.2bn.
Vistry reported it has started 2026 well, with its sales rate in the year so far standing at 1.42 sales per site per week, up from 0.59 in the same period last year. It said this reflected the “success of targeted pricing initiatives”.
The group’s average selling price increased by 3% to £282,000.
Vistry said demand for partner-funded deals strengthened throughout the year following the government’s announcement of a £2bn affordable homes programme top-up last March.
Fitzgerald said: “Our full year results were in line with guidance, assisted by the expected strong second half performance, and despite continued challenges in the open market and the uncertainty created by the November Budget.”
On his retirement he said: “It has been a privilege to work with such dedicated colleagues to transform the business to become the leading provider of affordable, mixed tenure housing in the country. It is an exciting time for Vistry as it focuses on addressing the chronic affordable housing shortage.”
Source: Building.co.uk