Sinyi Realty Inc (信義房屋) yesterday posted NT$460 million (US$16.46 million) in net income for the first quarter, more than 10 times the amount reported a year earlier when the COVID-19 outbreak had slowed transactions.
The Taipei-based company expects its brokerage and agency arms to gain further momentum this quarter, but uncertainty about the second half of this year is worsening.
“The earnings improvement had much to do with a low base [of comparison] last year when the virus outbreak kept people home to avoid inflections,” Sinyi told an online investors’ conference.
Photo: Chen Yung-chi, Taipei Times
The results translated into earnings per share (EPS) of NT$0.65, compared with EPS of NT$0.05 a year earlier.
First-quarter revenues totaled NT$3.62 billion, representing a 65.5 percent spike from a year earlier. Sinyi’s brokerage business generated 80 percent of its revenue last quarter, while its agency and development arms contributed about 12 percent and 8 percent respectively.
Local property brokers are expecting an increase in transactions from sellers who want to exit before stricter property tax terms go into effect on July 1.
Houses resold within five years of purchase would be subject to taxes of 35 to 45 percent, as opposed to within two years of purchase. Property deals would also include transfers of presale project contracts and equity transfers.
Sinyi said agency business is unlikely to grow in the second half, as developers have become conservative.
Real demand, namely first-home buyers and people with relocation needs, would continue to drive housing transactions, while investors would flee the market to avoid having their capital locked in for a protracted period, it said.
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