Full year volumes will be lower than expected says housebuilder Crest Nicholson because of a flat market and the failed post election bounce back. Chief operating officer Stephen Stone said that people were taking longer to make up their minds on properties and he was having to boost incentives, such as subsidised mortgages or part exchanges. Crest also said that in the absence of rampant house price inflation, rising building costs could squeeze margins by up to 1% in the second half. Stone said: “It is very tough at the moment. There were some shoots of interest in January and usually it continues to grow into the spring but this time it flattened off.” The comments came as Crest revealed that it spent £2.1 million on professional fees fending off an attempted £480 million takeover by Gerald Ronson’s Heron International. (Times, Telegraph, FT)