So, some mixed news in Q1 from the housebuilding industry. Persimmon and Barratt report declining sales figures for 2007 yet increasing profits. Sales Directors are reporting increasing footfall to site but customers are delaying buying decisions. The media reports turbulence in the lending market but interest rates have been reduced for the second time in three months. It would be a shrewd person who could accurately predict the direction of the industry for the remaining nine months of 2008.

So what effect has all this had on the employment market for housebuilding professionals? In short, the housebuilders are taking this opportunity to re-evaluate overhead. Persimmon and Gladedale have merged two local offices in to one in a number of locations resulting in some existing vacancies being filled by employees from the adjacent regional office and a number of redundancies.

Housebuilders have long memories and don’t want to be over burdened should the market take a further downturn so the decision to replace leavers is being delayed. Departmental teams are managing on limited staff resources whilst everyone awaits the next shift in the market.

Many well respected and established senior managers and directors are putting the feelers out to create a safety net for themselves. Wary of an office closure or staffing cuts they are tentatively attempting to get a feel for other job opportunities should the possibility of redundancy materialise.

For the firms who are looking to fill vacancies the choice of candidate is a strong as it has been for several years. High performers are more open to an approach than seen in recent months.

As yet the change in market dynamics has seen no material change to salary expectations. Although with lower levels of recruitment activity it may take some time for the any downward pressure to take effect.

In summary, if you are recruiting staff expect to see three or four very good candidates for your vacancy but don’t expect to employ them on the cheap. If you are looking for a new position some confidence seeping back in the market is what you require to take the brakes off recruitment plans.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 28th, 2008 at 2:23 pm and is filed under Property. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.