News Corp-owned real estate listings platform REA Group has posted a 17 per cent revenue growth for the first quarter of FY19.
Revenue increased to $221.9 million with the company’s EBITDA increasing by 23 per cent to $130.9 million compared to the previous period.
This growth was despite tough market conditions; the platform reported a three per cent decline in listings across the country. Sydney alone saw an eight per cent drop and Melbourne dropped one per cent.
According to an ASX announcement, REA was attributing the growth to the Australian Residential business and the inclusion of the Hometrack Australia business. This was not included in the previous period.
In the announcement REA Group CEO Tracey Fellows said, “Our strong results this quarter demonstrate, despite tougher market conditions, our customers and consumers are clearly seeing value in the products and experiences we are creating.”
Ms Fellows went on to say that the platform saw 2.7 times more visits than the closest competitor, according to Neilsen data.
The announcement also noted that tougher lending conditions and the effects of the Royal Commission into banking resulted in a subdued revenue in REA’s Financial Services business, and that these conditions should be expected to continue for the rest of the financial year.
REA also said market conditions were not expected to improve in the short term and may, in fact, drop further in the lead-up to the NSW election in March.
