Tough times for buyers, says Telford Homes

East London house and flat developer Telford Homes today said potential buyers are still having problems finding mortgages and many are unable to complete on properties they bought off plan.

In the last six months it has achieved 224 sales, up from 119 a year ago, but these were largely of properties completed in 2006 and 2007. It also managed to re-sell 36 homes which had earlier failed to complete, leaving it with the original buyers' 10% deposit.

But chief executive Andrew Wiseman still believes the East London market is more resilient than most, not least because if the 2012 Olympics.

He also pointed out that Telford's close relationship with housing associations had cushioned it from some of the worst effects of the downturn. He said full-year figures should be in line with forecasts.