Estate agent Foxtons was hit badly by the slowdown in the London housing market over the course of 2017, reporting a 65 percent drop in profit for the period.
Changes to stamp duty weighed heavily on the market’s performance in 2017, causing revenues at Foxtons, who benefitted strongly from London’s property boom, saw revenues fall 11 percent over the year. Profits before tax fell 65 percent to £6.5 million, with revenue from lettings also down 3 percent to £66.3 million.
The company confirmed that it expected trading conditions to “remain challenging in 2018”, warning that the London housing market was heading for historic lows. The group also said that its current sales pipeline is below where it was this time last year.
The company declared a full year dividend for 2017 of 0.7p, down 65 percent from 2016.
Shares in Foxtons (LON:FOXT) slumped 1.56 percent on the news to hit 82.00 (0851GMT).