锘緽ellway said this week that trading in the first few weeks of 2011 has been 鈥渆ncouraging鈥� after revealing it has sold 2,322 houses in the first six months of its financial year, which ended 31 January. This is a 3.8% increase on the 2,247 it sold in the same period last year.

In a trading update, it said its average selling price increased 8% compared with last year, ending January 2011 at 拢168,000. At the end of January 2010 its average selling price was 拢155,871.

These higher selling prices, which result from selling a larger proportion of houses than flats, will lead to higher margins on the properties sold and increase the firm鈥檚 profitability. Bellway鈥檚 operating margin is set to grow from 6.1% last year, to 7.1% in the first half of its 2011 financial year.

The news came as the latest data from the RICS showed house prices continuing to fall in January, albeit at a slower rate than before Christmas. Its monthly housing market survey found 31% more surveyors reported prices falling than rising, an improvement on the 47% in December.

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