It’s financial reporting season and we’re keeping tabs on the wins and losses across the real estate and mortgage industries. Unfortunately for RE/MAX and eXp, the losses added up between April-June.
Amid the slow market, RE/MAX reported that total revenue decreased 10.6 percent to $82.4 million in Q2, while revenue excluding marketing funds decreased 11.4 percent to $61.4 million, driven by negative 10.5 percent organic growth and adverse foreign currency movements of 0.9 percent.
Net income hit $2 million, a positive swing from the $700,000 loss the company posted in Q1.
“In the U.S., we remain focused on our growth initiatives, and we continue to build our related pipelines,” said Steve Joyce, RE/MAX Holdings Chief Executive Officer. “The combination of higher interest rates and tight inventory has made for a challenging housing market and agent-recruiting-and-retention environment. On a positive note, the pace of our U.S. agent count losses slowed quarter over quarter—which is encouraging, given the market conditions.”
Similarly, eXp announced it sawn revenue decrease by 13 percent in Q2 to $1.2 billion, while gross profit decreased 10 percent to $96.5 million. The company’s net income stood at $9.4 million.
“We know that in a slower housing market, productivity is at the top of everyone’s minds. As the largest and most efficient independent brokerage in the industry, we have the scale and financial resources to fund new investments in agent productivity while others scale back,” said Glenn Sanford, Founder, Chairman and CEO of eXp World Holdings. “During the quarter, we deployed several new agent support systems, increased our onboarding support coverage to 24/7 and established a white glove premier service desk for our top contributors. We also accelerated our initiative to get our agents paid faster and are making good progress toward our objective of near-real time agent payouts.”
Airbnb’s Profit Jumps 72 Percent As Home-Sales Stall
One company reaping the benefit of a slowing home-sales market is Airbnb, which announced a very strong second quarter of the year as nights and experiences booked exceeded 115 million.
The company posted quarterly revenue of $2.5 billion, up 18 percent year-over-year. Net income was $650 million—up 72 percent and marking Airbnb’s most profitable Q2 on a GAAP basis. Of note, cross-border nights booked grew by 16 percent in Q2 2023 compared to a year ago, marking a return to international travel post-pandemic.
“Our Q2 results show the desire to travel and host on Airbnb remains strong. We had over 115 million nights and experiences booked and added a record number of new listings – ending Q2 with over 7 million total active listings,” Airbnb Co-Founder and CEO Brian Chesky said. “We also saw 18 percent year-over-year revenue growth and Free Cash Flow of $900 million.”
Doug Echelberger Moves From Sotheby’s To Side
One of San Clemente’s top agents is on the move with word that Doug Echelberger has launched his new company, Inhabit Real Estate, with Side. The team will focus on communities in south Orange County.
Echelberger joined Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty in 2018, specializing in commercial, income, land, and investment properties. In 2022, Echelberger and company hit a sales volume of $203 million, notching the no. 3 spot for Orange County per 2022 Real Trends.
“Partnering with Side was the perfect solution for our vision of developing a unique, independent real estate company,” said Echelberger. “We’ve found a partner who shares our values and understands the importance of trust, community, and exceptional service. Side exceeds our expectations, offering the resources, technology, and support we need to thrive.”