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Connells’ pre-tax profits surpass £27m in H1

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  • 29/07/2015
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Connells’ pre-tax profits surpass £27m in H1
Estate agency and property services group Connells has predicted record profits for 2015 due to an upswing in activity during the second quarter of the year.

The group’s estate agency division announced pre-tax profits of £27.3m for the first half of 2015, which combined with the payback of its previous years’ investments, it predicted will put it on track to achieve a record year for the business.

However, the figures are down on those seen in the first six months of 2014, when profits before tax reached £42.6m which included  a gain of £10.1m from the part disposal of Zoopla shares.

In June alone, the sales agreed within the group’s estate agency division jumped 27.5% compared to the same period in 2014, with house prices continuing to rise for the fourth month in a row and now exceeding their pre-2008 peak.

New home sales also surged in 2015, with Connells recording a 43% increase compared to the same period in 2014. Figures taken from the group’s second half results suggest it is off to a strong start as sales in its residential channel increased by 13% compared to June 2014.

Profits at Connells Survey & Valuation saw a rise of 11% with transactions up 7% in the first half of the year, and a rise of 12% in Q2 alone. The division plans an additional £4m investment to expand further on recent developments in technology and additions to its surveying team.

Group CEO David Livesey said: “Our profit figure understates a performance and market that has improved as the year has progressed. 2015 started steadily and post-election, with the stabilising effect of a clear majority government and a recovering economy, market confidence now seems strong. Connells enters the second half of this year with a substantially increased sales pipeline and with every indication that this year will be a record breaking year for growth and profit for the Connells Group.”

In Connells’ lettings business, income has expanded by 23% for the first half of 2015. After opening more than 100 lettings branches in the last 18 months, the group said it plans to double its presence in lettings by the end of the year.

Likewise, the group’s mortgage services division has been boosted, seeing a 16% increase in income and over £3.5bn of mortgages placed by buyers and sellers in H1. Low interest rates, competition between lenders and greater availability of mortgage products, have all contributed to growth in this side of the business, Connells said.

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