SINGAPORE (May 9): APAC Realty reported 1Q18 earnings of $5.9 million for the 1Q18 ended March, up 46.8% from $4 million a year ago due to higher revenue.
Revenue for 1Q18 grew 56.7% to $105.2 million from $67.2 million a year ago mainly due to a surge in contributions from real estate brokerage fees and related services, specifically brokerage income from the resale and rental of properties, and new home sales.
Other revenue, too, grew 22.3% to $1.5 million from $1.2 million a year ago.
As a result of the higher group revenue, cost of services grew 62% to $35.3 million.
Allowance for doubtful debts fell 51.5% to $0.5 million compared to 51.5% $1.1 million in 1Q17 in the absence of the latter period’s higher allowance for doubtful debts from Jan 2017 to better reflect the underlying debt recovery patterns.
Overall, total operating expenses increased by 6.2% to $5.8 million over the latest quarter.
In its filing on Wednesday, APAC Realty attributes its revenue surge to a recovery in Singapore’s residential market, which led to a substantial increase in transaction volume for the private secondary market.
The group highlights that since beginning of 2018, ERA has already launched six projects and secured another 14 projects which will be launched during the rest of the year, representing a total of close to 11,000 residential units available for sale.
This is more than double the 4,800 units from eight projects launched by ERA in 2017 and will signify greater growth potential for ERA and more sales opportunities for ERA salespersons, adds the group.
“Going forward, we intend to strengthen and grow our presence in Singapore and the Asia-Pacific region, expand our range of services, and enhance our technological capabilities to remain a leader in our industry and a stalwart of the ERA brand here in Singapore and across the region,” says Jack Chua, executive director and CEO of APAC Realty.
Shares in APAC Realty closed 1 cent higher at $1.03 on Wednesday.
