Rental property website rent.com.au has reported strong results for the 2018 financial year, noting revenue growth of 41 per cent.
The company, which specialises in rental property searches and associated products, released their full financial year results yesterday morning, stating revenue for 2017/18 was $2,324,880 – up from $1,654,395 in 2016/17.
In their report to shareholders, rent.com.au directors explained that the strong results were largely attributed to increased offerings along with improved consumer uptake.
Products and services revenue alone more than doubled, rising from $521,536 in 2016/17 to $1,118,957 in 2017/18 on the back of features like Renter Resume.
The service allows prospective tenants to create a single online resume which can be used to apply for as many properties as they wish.
“As at 30 June 2018 over 300,000 renters had created a Renter Resume, [which is] continuing to grow at a rate of over 500 new Renter Resumes per day,” the report explained.
A suite of new products was also launched throughout the year, including services aimed at renters during their tenancy rather than only catering to those seeking a property.
These included a contents insurance service, new app and the acquisition of RentPay from MYOB.
Meanwhile, growing brand awareness saw a 32 per cent spike in advertising revenue, while less needed to be spent on marketing.
Marketing costs dropped 39 per cent, while overheads were also slashed by 42 per cent.
In the meantime, the company raised significant capital through the placement of almost 30 million shares with new and existing shareholders. The share release resulted in a cash injection of $2,308,129.98 before costs.
The report noted that proceeds of both the Placement and further Share Purchase Plan were and will be used to fund:
- The acquisition of the rental payments system, RentPay, from MYOB
- The development of additional new products, e.g. a landlord portal and adjacent websites
- The marketing of new products.
The most recent financial results see the company’s net operating loss drastically reduced on previous years.
In 2016/17, rent.com.au reported a net operating loss of $8,513,631 but this financial year returned a net loss after tax of $2,822,539.
The group’s net assets were also on the up, increasing marginally from $3,592,578 at 30 June 2017 to $3,619,688 at 30 June 2018.
On the flip side, cash reserves decreased from $3,254,380 at the end of last financial year to $2,289,603 at 30 June 2018.
And shareholders seeking a dividend will need to remain patient, with no dividend returned by the company this financial year.
“The Group remains focused on its short-term goal of cashflow break-even; however, it is also expanding its product and service offerings deeper into the tenancy period as well as across adjacent websites,” the directors stated.
“The Group expects that these additional activities will see it achieve its cashflow break-even goal in the short term while also setting the Group on the course to greater profitability in the future.”
