In its annual results, Foxtons said this was due to a six per cent rise in mortgage activity with higher average fees and larger loan sizes. The business saw a two per cent increase in protection volumes as well.
Some £4.5m of its revenue was generated by refinance activity, which the group described as “non-cyclical”. Meanwhile, purchase activity made up £5.7m of its revenue, which Foxtons said was more cyclical in nature and sensitive to external influences.
Alexander Hall posted an adjusted operating profit of £1.8m, up from £1.5m in 2021.
Foxtons said it aims to grow Alexander Hall’s revenue as part of its ongoing strategy. It will do this by increasing the adviser headcount, improving adviser productivity through technology investment and improving its cross-sell activities by focusing on secondary products such as protection.
The group continued: “With the right level of capacity in the Financial Services business we can make more of the immediate cross-sell opportunity from the estate agency business, with the added benefit of growing the portfolio of long-term refinance customers.”
Alexander Hall arranged 5,003 mortgages, a slight rise on the previous year’s 4,991. It contributed to seven per cent of Foxtons’ revenue.
Foxtons performance
The Foxtons group more than doubled its profit before tax from £5.6m in 2021 to £11.9m in 2022.
Its lettings business generated a 17 per cent surge in revenue to £86.9m and its sales division saw a one per cent growth in revenue to £43.2m.
The group’s total revenue rose from £9.5m to £10.2m.
Guy Gittins, chief executive of Foxtons, said “a lot had been achieved” in the six months since he joined the business.
He added: “There is significant unfulfilled potential to unlock within the business and our growth ambitions demonstrate this. We want to deliver between £25m and £30m of operating profit, in the medium term, and improve operating margins to over 15 per cent through maximising the operating leverage in the business.
“It is my aim to make Foxtons London’s go-to estate agent, and by doing so, create significant value for shareholders.”
