One of Britain’s largest house builders, Bovis Homes, built almost double the number of homes in the first four months of this year compared with the same period in 2013.

In a trading update covering the period from January 1, Bovis said it delivered 2,086 units, up 78% from a year ago.

Reservations were also up by 24%, with sales prices “ahead of expectations”.

The firm said it is on target to build up to 3,850 homes this year.

Bovis is the latest house builder to announce sterling results, underlining a burgeoning recovery in the sector.

However, the recovery has caught much of the industry off guard, with a shortage of bricks and skilled workers.

Bovis said it expects the cost of constructing its homes to rise by 5% this year.

Separately, in London, a new boom in tower-block building will help meet Boris Johnson’s housing targets.

CBRE, the property consultancy, said 13,600 residential units are currently under construction, with a further 70,000 in the planning pipeline.

All told, there are 135 towers in London which are either being built or in the pipeline.

The new towers go up to 75 storeys high, with ten blocks 50 storeys or more. That compares with current residential towers, where the mixed-use Shard is the tallest with 87 storeys, but only one other block is 50 storeys, and the others are all lower.