As a result, revenues from its advice arm came to a total of £10.2 million. The estate agency firm ‒ which owns adviser Alexander Hall, and which it has previously looked to sell ‒ said that growth in financial services was particularly notable given the “significant upheaval” in the mortgage markets last year.
It put this performance down to “the strength of our proposition, the expertise of our advisers and the recurring revenues from refinance activity”.
Foxtons suggested that the prospects for its mortgage arm are positive for 2023 as a whole. In the report, it stated: “Mortgage rates have started to reduce in recent weeks and buyer activity is picking up, which may result in a more favourable sales market in the latter part of the year.”
It also suggested that demand for remortgages would remain strong “due to their non-cyclical and recurring characteristics”.
For Foxtons overall, the annual results revealed that revenues grew in 2022 from £126.5m to £140.3m, while adjusted operating profit moved to £13.9m from £8.9m.
Foxtons: Looking at measures to improve performance
The business noted that its foundations were strong, but pinpointed four “core operational failings” which had resulted in weaker performance overall. These included poor use of data, outdated processes, an insufficient headcount and “no clear customer proposition”.
It outlined a host of measures it is looking to take in order to improve that performance, including targeting annual average revenue growth of between seven and 10 per cent from its financial services division “by maximising cross-sell opportunities”.
Guy Gittins, who took up the role of group chief executive six months ago, said: “Whilst the macroeconomic backdrop remains uncertain, our resilient lettings and financial services businesses, coupled with the operational improvements we are delivering at pace, should mitigate most of the impact of a potentially lower volume sales market.”
