A lack of inventory is pressuring existing home sales, but it has not stopped shares of Zillow Group from rising over 50% so far this year. “We are very strong with consumers,” said Kathleen Philips, CFO of Zillow Group Z. “People are coming to shop notwithstanding constraints in inventories.” Sales of previously owned homes fell 0.9% in August from a month earlier to an annual rate of 5.3 million, according to the National Association of Realtors. Wall Street analysts estimated home sales would reach a rate of 5.5 million in August. Sales of existing homes represent about 90% of all sales and are a key gauge as to the health of the housing market. The market remains steady over a longer period, with existing-home sales up 0.8% in August compared with a year ago. Home prices continue to rise due to a dwindling inventory, although Philips said the appreciation is also not much of a factor in Zillow’s growth. Revenue at the company grew 31% in the second quarter. The median price of an existing home coming in at $240,200 in August, up 5.1% from a year earlier. “We grew Zillow during the worst housing market on record, so we are not terribly impacted by the state of the housing market,” said Philips. “That said, consumers are busy looking for new homes and to see what their homes are worth.” Philips added that millennials have been some of the biggest browsers of late, a welcome change for a demographic that was scared away from the market following the housing bust. As for Zillow’s 2017 growth plans, Philips said the company is focusing on “emerging marketplaces like mortgages, and rentals in New York City.” In February, the company purchased Naked Apartments, New York City’s largest rentals-only platform, for $13 million in cash. It was Zillow’s second major deal in New York, following its $50 million purchase of StreetEasy in 2013.
Subscribe to TheStreetTV on YouTube:
For more content from TheStreet visit:
Check out all our videos:
Follow TheStreet on Twitter:
Like TheStreet on Facebook:
Follow TheStreet on LinkedIn:
Follow TheStreet on Google+:
source
