Revenues rise but agency numbers d…

Rightmove has reported a 7% rise in operating profit despite losing agents last year.

The portal’s latest annual report released this morning shows profits of £258m off the back of a 10% rise in revenues.

Total membership reduced by 1% to 18,785, with agency branches don 1% and new homes developers falling 4%.

Average revenue per advertiser (ARPA) was up 9% to £,1431 per month.

Agency ARPA increased 6% to £1,356, while Rightmove ended the year with 15,839 agent customers.

It registered 15.4bn minutes spent on the platform during 2023, which is slightly down on the 16.2bn in 2022 but time on the portal was 27% higher than 2019 when it was 12.1bn, Rightmove said.

Rightmove said it expects ARPA growth of £100 to £100 this year with overall revenue up between 7% and 9%.

However, it expects a further drop in customers due to the “uncertain macro environment.”

Johan Svanstrom, chief executive of Rightmove, said: “In a year of economic uncertainty, consumers continued to trust Rightmove as the place to turn to help them make their move.  Customers were able to choose from an expanded, more sophisticated product suite, to continue to drive business results in a changing market environment.  

“Our financial performance in 2023 reflects the strength of our business model and our platform network effects.

“The results are underpinned by the commitment and talent of the Rightmove team, who are focused on innovation and delivering continuous improvement for our customers and consumers. 

“We reshaped our strategy during 2023, setting out a plan to further digitise the property sector, expand our business, stretch our brand and accelerate the financial performance long term. We are looking forward to 2024 with confidence and to delivering further value to all stakeholders on our platform, progressing the ambitious Rightmove strategy.”