UK's Crest Nicholson sees sales recover as it builds succession plan

(Recasts, adds CEO quotes)

LONDON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - British builder Crest Nicholson (Frankfurt: A1KCZN - news) reported that demand for new homes had recovered from weakness following Britain's vote to leave the European Union and has appointed its finance chief to run the business alongside its chief executive.

The company said its underlying sales rate per outlet per week fell to an average of 0.81 in the twelve months to the end of October 2016 from 0.90 in the same period last year.

"We probably saw a weakness about three or four weeks before the referendum and four weeks post but it's returned ...to very strong sales rates," Chief Executive Stephen Stone told Reuters.

The company laid out its succession plan, saying CFO Patrick Bergin had been appointed to the role of Group Chief Operating Officer, sharing responsibilities with Stone on day-to-day operations and negotiating land acquisitions.

The housebuilder said sales also fell due to a shift towards selling pricier properties in more expensive locations.

But sales began recovering in August and rose in October, suggesting a recovery in demand for new homes, echoing the sentiment from other major housebuilders in recent weeks.

After a brief blip in the wake of the June 23 referendum, demand for new homes has remained strong, supported by government schemes to encourage housebuilding and help first-time buyers onto the property ladder.

Crest Nicholson, which built 2,870 homes in south Wales, London and southern and eastern England in the 2016 financial year, said it maintained its aim to build 4,000 homes and record revenue of 1.4 billion pounds by 2019.

($1 = 0.8018 pounds) (Reporting by Costas Pitas; editing by Jason Neely and Louise Heavens)