Profits fall at Foxtons following downturn in London property market

July 27, 2017

Foxtons Group PLC today announced interim results for the half year ended 30 JUNE 2017.

Lettings revenue £32.1m down 2% versus prior year; Volumes up 1% with several growth initiatives underway, offset by fall in rental rates. Remains a resilient, recurring revenue stream.

Sales revenue £22.2m down 29% in the half; mainly driven by the Q1 surge in the prior year. Q2 sales revenue down 3% overall versus prior year and impacted by increased political uncertainty towards the end of the period.

Commenting on today’s statement, Nic Budden, Chief Executive Officer said:

“Our performance has been resilient in the context of a London property market that has been further impacted by unprecedented economic and political uncertainty. Whilst sales commissions in the second quarter as a whole were down 3% versus prior year, sales exchanges and our under offer pipeline weakened through June and the early part of July. The growth in our lettings portfolio was encouraging, up 2% to c.19,800 tenancies and now accounts for 55% of group revenues, delivering a steady and recurring income stream.

 “During the last six months we have maintained our relentless focus on delivering a market leading service for our customers and that remains our priority. We recently launched MyFoxtons for tenants and buyers, a sophisticated online portal to complement the equivalent for landlords and vendors launched last year, and early feedback has been encouraging. We have several new and exciting initiatives underway designed to build our lettings portfolio and strengthen our customer offer further. While conditions remain challenging, we are confident that these initiatives, together with the strength of our network, our balance sheet and our brand will support long term growth for our shareholders.”

Read  Foxtons interim results for the half year ended 30 JUNE 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

Letting Agent Talk

Top 3 Best Places to Be a Landlord in the UK

These are the 3 best cities to be a landlord, according to landlords. Landlord Resource have analysed Zoopla data to identify the UK’s highest-yielding buy-to-let locations and share top tips to find the right rental area for a return on investment. The top 3 highest-yielding buy-to-let cities in the UK revealed: Rank City Average Monthly…
Read More →
Breaking News

Landlords still backing buy-to-let

The latest research from London lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves, has revealed that more than half of landlords (50.6%) still believe residential property remains a good long-term investment despite increased regulation, with almost two-thirds (62.7%) intending to maintain their current portfolio over the next year. However, just 3.9% plan to expand, with landlord taxation…
Read More →
labour party scam mansion tax
Breaking News

Labour to enforce entry to your home for Property Mansion Tax?

As Labour take a tighter control on UK citizens and further explore taxes to impose – The latest trending topic discussed is the suggestion that they wish to send officials out to homes they serve in order to value and impose the mansion tax. If the group of unprofessional leaders in charge couldn’t slip any…
Read More →
small house bird box
Breaking News

Public Sentiment Favours Social Infrastructure Over Housing Resistance

Britain is more YIMBY than NIMBY, as social housing tops consumers’ housing policy priorities   More than two in five UK adults support new homes being built within three miles of where they live (43 per cent), nearly twice the proportion who oppose local development (22 per cent) Building social or affordable housing is the…
Read More →
Breaking News

Homebuyers are Prioritising Wi-Fi Over Good Schools

One in four Brits would reject a home over potential slow broadband Almost half (45%) of recent and prospective home movers rank broadband among their considerations when choosing a home, much more so than local schools (26%) Over 1 in 3 (37%) don’t feel settled into a new home until their Wi-Fi is working. Of…
Read More →
Letting Agent Talk

Landlord returns reach almost 7% in some areas

Landlord returns reach almost 7% in strongest rental markets, but protecting those returns is just as important as generating them   The latest analysis by The Letting Partnership has revealed that rental yields are reaching almost 7% in England’s strongest-performing markets, but the firm has warned landlords that generating a healthy return is only half the equation,…
Read More →