Home sales were up in the first quarter, according to recently released financial results from Realogy Holdings Corp. The first quarter ended March 31, 2015, and the results showed many positives for the housing recovery, including the following highlights:
- Revenue of $1.1 billion, which represents a 5 percent increase compared to first quarter 2014, was driven by higher home sale transaction volume.
- Adjusted EBITDAwas $70 million, compared to $53 million in the first quarter of 2014, a year-over-year increase of 32 percent.
- Net loss for first quarter 2015 was $32 million, and basic loss per share was $0.22.
“With 10 percent home sale volume growth, the first quarter was stronger than the 5 percent to 9 percent range we anticipated,” says Richard A. Smith, Realogy’s chairman, chief executive officer and president. “The increases we saw in homesale transaction sides and average sale price in March, along with the strength of the sales contracts opened in March and April, are indicating a healthy spring selling season for the existing home sale market.”
Smith continues: “Operationally, the first quarter momentum has carried over into the second quarter with NRT’s acquisition of Coldwell Banker United, Realtors. We expect it to be an immediately accretive acquisition that geographically strengthens NRT’s presence in Florida and Texas, expands into new markets in the Carolinas and now connects its Eastern Seaboard presence contiguously from Maine to Florida.”
“Looking ahead at the second quarter of 2015, we expect to see home sale transaction volume gains in the range of 8 percent to 11 percent year-over-year on a company-wide basis,” says Anthony E. Hull, executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer. “Based on our closed and open sales activity in March and April, we expect second quarter home sale transaction sides to be up 5 percent to 7 percent year-over-year and average sale price to increase 3 percent to 4 percent for RFG and NRT combined.”
Hull continues: “Traditionally, the first quarter is our weakest due to the seasonality of residential real estate and represents our lowest share of the year for transaction volume, revenue and EBITDA. We also have historically reported a net loss in the first quarter as the period EBITDA is not sufficient to offset interest expense, depreciation and amortization which are reflected on a straight line basis throughout the year. As the spring selling season unfolds, we expect our aggregate number of home sale transaction sides to increase sequentially from approximately 272,000 in the first quarter of 2015 to between 400,000 and 408,000 in the second quarter.”
For more information, visit www.realogy.com.
