The 105,000-home housing association has also increased its fixed asset sales and sold its land business, L&Q Estates
The housing association has boosted its operating surplus by 65% in the first quarter of 2024.
The 109,000-home landlord increased its operating surplus, which excludes one-off costs, to £112m from £68m in the same period the previous year.
L&Q is now projecting an operating surplus of between £410m and £430m for the year ending 31 March 2025, which would be an increase on the £366m reported in 2023/24.
L&Q delivered 353 new homes in the first quarter of the 2024/25 financial year, down from 701 homes in the same period last year. This shift comes as L&Q focuses on the “strategic prioritisation” of its existing homes.
In the year to 31 March 2025, L&Q said it expects to deliver around 2,600 new homes, of which 80% are expected to be for social housing tenures.
This has led to L&Q reducing its development pipeline from 13,897 homes in the first quarter of 2023, to 10,506 homes in the first quarter of this year.
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L&Q has also increased its earnings from fixed asset sales by £12m compared to the same period last year. It reported earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of £26m in the first quarter of 2024, and also sold its strategic land business L&Q Estates to Urban & Civic, which completed on 6 August.
The housing association’s EBITDA interest cover has also increased to 179%, from 119% in quarter one of 2023.
L&Q’s operating costs increased by 13%, rising from £242m to £273m between 31 March and 30 June 2024, compared to the same period in 2023.
On the results, Waqar Ahmed, group director of finance said: “L&Q’s Q1 trading results demonstrate that progress is being made against our strategic objectives to divert a greater level of expenditure towards our residents’ existing homes through our £3bn major works investment programme and to lower our risk profile.
“In the year to date, we have invested £76m (2023 Q1: £77m) in our maintenance programme to improve the safety, comfort and quality of our homes and services.”
Ahmed added: “Alongside reducing investment in our development pipeline, we are delivering on other opportunities to create capacity to invest in our existing homes and to provide responsive and reliable services that offer the best value for residents.”
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