Countrywide PLC announces poor performance in sales and lettings

Countrywide PLC today announces preliminary statement of annual results for the year ended 31 December 2017. The statement headlines: 2017 A disappointing year – 2018  Management Change and recovery plan underway.

Group reported:  Income for the full year was £671.9 million (2016: £737.0 million) while adjusted EBITDA was 23% lower at £64.7 million (2016: £83.5 million) driven by poor performance in Sales and Lettings. more…..

Commenting, Peter Long, Executive chairman said:

“The under-performance of our business over the last three years has resulted in us making significant management change in the Group. 

Industry expertise in all areas of our business is key. Within Sales and Lettings, the previous strategy resulted in us losing a lot of that expertise.  In the Group, we are fortunate in that we have an industry veteran, Paul Creffield, who has been promoted to the role of Group operations director.  His deep understanding of the market and operations means that we have quickly been able to identify what we need to do to begin addressing our under-performance. I am greatly encouraged by the number of high calibre industry business leaders that we already have within our Sales and Lettings business and a number of similarly experienced and high calibre industry people who previously left us and want to rejoin now that Paul is in this role.

Fundamentally, Countrywide has a unique market position given its breadth within the property services industry. We have established and trusted brands that resonate with customers, together with dedicated and committed colleagues who are the cornerstone of our business. The strong areas in the Group, Financial Services and B2B, have unfortunately been overshadowed by the poor performance in our core Sales and Lettings business units. We believe these business units are fixable, know what we have to do to restore them and the steps to take that should result in a return to profitable growth.  This will take time but ultimately there will be much upside for our Group and our shareholders, whose patience has been sorely tested recently.”

Read the Countrywide plc Preliminary statement of annual results for the year ended 31 December 2017 in full click here.

 

Allen Walkey

Highly experienced businessman with a successful career in property sales and investment both in the UK and abroad. Now a freelance writer and blogger for the property and Investment Industry, keeping readers up-to-date with changes and events in a rapidly changing world.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Buyers Looking Beyond London

London new-build demand plummets behind commuter belt as buyers look beyond the capital   Demand for new-build homes in Essex more than three times higher than in London, while Hertfordshire faces supply squeeze amid growing buyer appetite   The latest research by UK Property Development has revealed a growing divide between London’s new-build market and…
Read More
Finance

Top six tips for first-time buyers

Independent mortgage broker, Flagstone Financial, has outlined key advice for first-time buyers, pointing to flexible options as signs of an improving mortgage market.   With high loan-to-value lending (80–95%) becoming more widely available, the property ladder is more accessible than in recent years, and experts at Flagstone Financial, partner of the Beresfords Group, are advising…
Read More
to let sign 2025
Breaking News

England’s rental stock surges by as much as 86.6% in a year

Rental listings have almost doubled in Tyne and Wear since August 2025, with Greater Manchester and a host of other markets also recording double-digit growth   The latest research from Propoly has revealed that England’s rental listings have climbed by an average of 7.4% in the past year, led by an 86.6% increase in Tyne and…
Read More
Breaking News

One in five homebuyers have been ‘catfished’

The latest research from House Buyer Bureau has found that, with the rise of A.I, “homebuyer catfishing” is becoming an increasingly familiar experience for UK buyers, with one in five saying they viewed a property where the listing photos had been digitally enhanced to make the home appear better than it actually was. However, while the…
Read More
Letting Agent Talk

Only 31% of letting agents confident their onboarding process protects against tenancy fraud

The latest research from Propoly has revealed that just 31% of UK letting agents are absolutely confident that their tenant onboarding process protects against tenancy fraud, as lengthy onboarding times and delays with referencing continue to create challenges for the industry.   Propoly surveyed UK letting agents to understand how long tenant onboarding currently takes,…
Read More
Breaking News

Are first-time buyers ruling themselves out before they even apply?

New report reveals widespread mortgage myths, with more than half wrongly thinking existing debt rules out being approved More than a third of potential first-time buyers (37%) worry about being rejected for a mortgage Over half (53%) have delayed major life milestones while trying to buy their first home, including getting married and having children…
Read More