Overview of Hemnet's Performance#
Shares of Hemnet Group AB, a Swedish property platform, experienced a decline of over 2% on Friday. This drop followed the company's announcement of a 22% decrease in net sales for February, attributed to a change in their revenue recognition model. The new model, which is based on a pay-on-sale approach, has delayed when the company can report its earnings.
Sales Figures and Trends#
In February, Hemnet's net sales fell to 87.9 million Swedish crowns, down from 112.2 million crowns the previous year. When looking at the combined sales for January and February, the decline was even steeper at 23%, dropping to 149.5 million crowns from 195 million crowns. Notably, revenue from property sellers decreased by 25% in February, a slight improvement from January's 31% drop but significantly worse than the 4.4% decline seen in the last quarter of 2025.
Changes in Listings and Revenue#
The number of published property listings also saw a significant decline, falling 30% to 8,700 in February compared to 12,500 a year earlier. This was a slight improvement from January's 32% drop. Paid listings decreased by 41%, totaling 7,400. However, the average revenue per paid listing did see an increase of 11%, reaching 9,082 crowns, although this growth rate has slowed from January's 19% increase.
New Sales Model Implementation#
Hemnet introduced a new sales model called "Sell First, Pay Later" on February 2 in Stockholm County. This model allows revenue to be recognized when a property is sold rather than when it is listed. Approximately 50% of eligible sellers in Stockholm chose this model in February, with a sell-through rate of just below 20%. CEO Jonas Gustafsson noted that the initial data from this model aligns with their expectations. The model is set to expand to other regions in Sweden soon.