Cala Homes has been sold to US private equity firm Sixth Street and former owner Patron Capital for £1.35bn ending months of speculation about its ownership.

Former owner Legal & General took a 100% stake in the housebuilder in 2018, acquiring the 52% of the business it did not own for £315m from Patron It first bought a share in the business in 2013.

But rumours began earlier this year that the insurance giant was looking at a sale of the business as part of a review which saw the firm announce last year that it was closing its modular housing factory in Leeds in the wake of crippling losses.

L&G first bought a stake in Cala 11 years ago, fully owning it in 2018

Today’s announcement comes after the firm said in March that pre-tax profit had slipped from £169m to £112m last year on turnover down 7% to £1.3bn.

The business completed 2,917 homes in the year, a 3.6% decline on the 3,027 posted in 2022.

The deal is expected to formally complete by the end of the year and Cala chief executive Kevin Whitaker said: “This investment by Sixth Street and Patron demonstrates their confidence in Cala’s business plan and further potential. We look forward to developing a strong partnership with Sixth Street and reigniting the excellent relationship we shared with Patron between 2013 and 2018.”

Based in Edinburgh, Cala’s main geographic areas are the South of England, the Cotswolds and Scotland.