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Update: This story was updated on Aug. 8, 2024, after Douglas Elliman hosted its Second Quarter 2024 Conference Call with shareholders.
New York-based brokerage Douglas Elliman saw revenue tick up slightly during the second quarter of 2024 while improving its net loss, as the firm weathered a challenging real estate market and faced pressure from investors in recent months.
Consolidated revenues rose from $275.9 million during Q2 2023 to $285.8 million during Q2 2024, and gross transaction volume increased from $9.9 billion to $10.6 billion year over year, according to an earnings report released on Wednesday.
Douglas Elliman’s net loss was $1.7 million at a rate of $0.02 per diluted common share, compared to $5.2 million, or $0.06 per diluted common share, one year earlier.
Operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) was $2.4 million, compared to a loss of $2.6 million the previous year. Adjusted EBITDA attributed to the company’s real estate brokerage segment was $6.6 million, compared to $2.5 million in Q2 2023.
Howard M. Lorber
“In the second quarter of 2024, Douglas Elliman delivered a year-over-year increase in quarterly revenues and gross transaction value, which reflects the strength of the luxury markets we operate in and the gradual stabilization of home purchasing activity,” Howard M. Lorber, chairman and CEO of Douglas Elliman, said in a statement.
“As the interest rate environment continues to improve, Douglas Elliman is well-positioned to drive long-term growth and value for stockholders due to the distinct competitive advantages provided by our dedicated team of world-class agents and leading development marketing business.”
Douglas Elliman had a consolidated operating loss of $3.7 million and a real estate brokerage segment operating income of $2.9 million, compared to an operating loss of $8.3 million and income of $1 million, respectively, the previous year.
The average price per real estate transaction during the quarter was $1.81 million.
The company’s improved financial results no doubt came as a sigh of relief, as Elliman faced increasing pressure from shareholders in recent months because of its shaky performance over the last few quarters. Last week, one shareholder, Bradley Tirpak, wrote a letter to investors arguing that Lorber should be replaced by a full-time CEO and have his bonus clawed back for failing to meet financial targets designated by the company’s board.
In early July, Douglas Elliman announced that the company had received a $50 million growth investment from credit-focused alternative asset management firm Kennedy Lewis Investment Management. At that time, the firm said the move was a strategy to strengthen the company’s balance sheet and bolster its growth. Kennedy Lewis co-founder and co-Managing Partner David Chene joined Douglas Elliman’s board as part of the deal.
The company also shared financial results from the first six months of 2024 in its earnings release.
Consolidated revenues were down slightly year over year, from $489.9 million during the first half of 2023 to $486 million during the same period in 2024.
The average price per transaction during the first six months of the year was $1.72 million.
The company’s consolidated operating loss during the first half of 2024 was $45.1 million with a real estate brokerage segment loss of $32.3 million, compared to $32.1 million and $18.4 million, respectively, the year prior.
The company’s net loss was $43.1 million, or $0.52 per diluted common share, during the first half of 2024, compared to $22.8 million, or $0.28 per diluted common share, the year before.
Those losses include payments made toward Douglas Elliman’s $17.75 million antitrust commission lawsuit settlement. Thus far, the firm has paid out $7.75 million of the settlement and is slated to make two more $5 million payments through Dec. 31, 2027.
During an earnings call with shareholders on Thursday morning, Lorber said the company was pleased with the recent developments during the quarter of receiving preliminary court approval for its antitrust lawsuit settlement and the $50 million investment from Kennedy Lewis.
“We believe this positions us for strategic growth and expansion,” Lorber noted, regarding the Kennedy Lewis deal.
Despite continuing to deal with “generationally high interest rates” and other market challenges, Lorber said the brokerage “remains encouraged,” particularly because of its strengths in the new development and ultra-luxury sectors.
Lorber said Douglas Elliman’s new development pipeline currently consists of $26.5 billion in gross transaction value.
“The advent of the $100 million listing is upon us and we are well-positioned to sell those properties,” he added.
Lorber said that the firm is already starting to see a slight positive impact from gradually growing listing volume in certain markets, a trend the company expects to continue into 2025.
The firm has made “judicious” cost reductions in recent months to improve its bottom line, Lorber continued, including via headcount reductions, cutting costly sponsorships and reducing office space. Looking ahead, he said the company will continue to work to drive operational efficiencies through measures like market expansion and tech adoptions.
“We believe these efforts are enabling Douglas Elliman to meet industry challenges head-on without significantly impacting the agent experience,” Lorber said.
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