Up to 300 jobs are under threat because of a proposed merger between two housebuilding firms.

Housebuilders Beazer and Bryant have announced plans to merge and create a new group valued at more than £750 million.

The pair described the tie-up as a "merger of equals" and said it would result in one of the UK's largest housebuilding groups.

Domus, as the new group will be known, is expected to bring annual savings of £20 million and create a business with a combined turnover of £1.5 billion.

Hubert Reid, chairman of Bryant, who is to retain his role as chairman of the new group, said today: "We believe the merger will result in one of the most productive housebuilders in the UK."

The companies are among the UK's largest housebuilders, with Bryant specialising in the higher end of the market and Beazer being the third largest company in the sector in terms of unit completions and operating a multi-brand strategy.

The new company will have a landbank of 37,000 plots at its disposal, with Bryant's skills base in greenfield developments expected to complement Beazer's existing expertise in brownfield regeneration work.

Both sides said they had been looking for potential merger partners over the past 12 months and said they believed the deal would "maximise shareholder value".

The combined market value of Bryant and Beazer is currently £750 million.

The new company's chief exeuctive will be Beazer boss John Low, while Bryant's current CEO Peter Long will be his deputy. The pair said the trading names of Bryant and Beazer would remain, with Domus, the Latin word for house, being used for the holding company.

Mr Low said: "All of our existing brand names will be kept and they will be one of the strengths of this merger."