Bovis, the housebuilder, said that the number of new homes reserved for private buyers had plunged by more than a half, reflecting the impact of the credit crunch on the residential property market.

The gloomy indication of future demand emerged as the company reported an 83 per cent collapse in interim profits to £9.5 million, a cut in dividend from 17.5p to 5p, and a warning that sales volumes were likely to continue at their current reduced rate for the rest of the year.

Bovis had set aside 795 homes for indviduals and families as of June 30, compared with 1,621 a year ago. Over the summer, the builder said that the situation had remained unchanged, and reservation levels to August 22 had "continued to be notably lower."

Although not all reservations turn into completed purchases, the figure is the best indication of future purchasing by private individuals. By contrast, the demand for social housing -- for councils or housing associations -- increased slightly to 687 reservations from 661 the year before.

Bovis sold 624 homes in the first six months of the year to private buyers, down 43 per cent on the year before. Those sales helped generate £149.3 million in total turnover, also down 43 per cent on the previous year.

To maintain profits, staff numbers have been slashed by 40 per cent since the start of the year, which will save £10 million -- a fifth of its total annual overhead. Bovis shut its Eastern regional office, and the level of subcontractors has also been cut significantly.

Debt totalled £93 million, although that figure will increase to between £110 million and £120 million by the end of the year. There were no write offs against the value of the company's landbank, helped by the fact that when sales are achieved, prices are only down modestly.

The average home sold for £196,700 to private buyers in the first half of the year, 4 per cent lower than last year's £204,500. However, most of the houses sold this year were slightly smaller, and in square foot terms, the underlying sales price was actually up by 2 per cent.

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