McInerny writes off land values by 52%

House-building firm McInerney has written down the value of its Irish landbank by 52% on prices from mid-2008.

In its first-half financial results statement, the company said it had written another €156m off the value of its land bank in Ireland and the UK, having written down €110m at the time of its 2008 results.

Since mid-2008, it has lowered the estimated value of its Irish land to an average of €26,000 per plot, down 52%. It estimates that its UK land has fallen 41% in value.

The company said that it does “not now foresee any immediate improvement in market conditions”.

McInerney reported a pre-tax loss before exceptional items of €12.8m for the six months, compared with a loss of €22m in the same period last year.

The company said there had been some signs of price stability and a steady pattern of sales at a low level in the UK.

However, in Ireland, McInerney said prices continued to fall with sales since May being ‘particularly weak’.

Article courtesy of The Evening Echo newspaper.