Zillow posts $676M in Q3 revenue as rentals and mortgage businesses power growth

This story originally appeared on Real Estate News.
Zillow continues to be an overachiever, at least with its financial performance.
The home search giant’s revenue has consistently beat expectations for the past two years, and Q3 was no different: Revenue was $676 million for the third quarter, up 16% year-over-year and above the company’s previous guidance, driven by the strength of its rentals and mortgage divisions.
Rentals revenue was up 41% year-over-year to $174 million, while mortgage revenue increased 36% to $53 million, according to Zillow’s shareholder letter. The company’s main revenue stream, residential, rose 7% to $435 million.
Zillow also turned a profit, netting $10 million during the quarter and sustaining its run of profitability for a third consecutive quarter.
What Zillow had to say
While Zillow’s financials were strong, it was also mired in litigation during the quarter, something CEO Jeremy Wacksman touched on during the earnings call.
On lawsuits: Wacksman briefly addressed some of the company’s litigation issues, particularly the lawsuit brought by the Federal Trade Commission over Zillow’s rental agreement with Redfin.
The FTC alleges that Zillow and Redfin illegally conspired to eliminate competition in the rental listings market with a syndication agreement. Attorney generals from five states filed a similar lawsuit a day later.
Wacksman noted that they’ve had the agreement in place for about six months and have seen the benefits for both consumers and property managers.
“So to us it’s obviously pro-consumer and pro-property manager, which makes it pro-competitive,” Wacksman said. “We look forward to making that case as the process plays out.”
On the Compass-Anywhere merger: Investors asked what impact the deal might have if it leads to more private listings — a core part of Compass’ three-phased marketing strategy — which are largely prohibited on Zillow’s site after it adopted new listing standards (prompting a lawsuit from Compass).
Wacksman said he doesn’t foresee any big impact to Zillow’s business.
“We do see maybe more noise around hidden listings and the potential to push more hidden listings onto sellers and to buyers and to harm consumers,” Wacksman said, adding that much of the industry is on board with Zillow’s private listing ban.
Consumers “don’t want to put the internet back in the box, and we expect that behavior to continue, because agents are trying to do right by their sellers and sell their homes,” Wacksman added.
Key numbers
Revenue: $676 million, up 16% year-over-year. Residential increased 7% to $435 million; mortgage revenue was up 36% to $53 million; and rentals revenue climbed 41% to $174 million.
Cash and investments: $1.4 billion at the end of September, up from $1.2 billion at the end of June.
Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization): $165 million in Q3, up from $127 million a year earlier.
Net income/loss: A gain of $10 million in Q3, up from $2 million the previous quarter, an improvement over its $20 million loss a year ago.
Traffic and visits: Traffic across all Zillow Group websites and apps totaled 250 million average monthly unique users in Q3, up 7% year-over-year, the company said. Total visits were 2.5 billion in Q3, up 4% year-over-year.
Q4 outlook: For the fourth quarter, Zillow estimates revenue will be in the $645 million to $655 million range, which would represent high single-digit year-over-year growth.
Notable moves
Zillow was busy dealing with litigation during the third quarter:
- The private listings lawsuit filed by Compass in June has resulted in an ongoing legal back-and-forth between the two parties.
- CoStar filed a copyright infringement case against Zillow in July over the alleged improper use of photos.
- The FTC case filed in September has the potential to affect Zillow’s business structure.
- Also in September, a class action lawsuit was filed alleging inflated costs related to Zillow’s flex referral program, and a former employee sued the company over alleged discrimination.
The company also had positive news to share during the quarter, noting in September that more than 50 brokerages had adopted Zillow Showcase. Newly named partners include The Agency, LPT Realty and Century 21 Masters in California.
“At The Agency, we’re always looking for ways to give our agents every advantage in showcasing their listings,” said Mauricio Umansky, CEO and founder of The Agency, adding that the partnership “allows us to maximize exposure, put homes in the best light and reach more potential buyers.”
In July, Zillow unveiled a new suite of products including Skytour, which allows home shoppers to get an interactive birds-eye view of a home and its surroundings, and is available exclusively to Showcase clients.
The company also hired a new chief economist in the third quarter. Mischa Fisher, who most recently taught data science at Northwestern University, has experience analyzing housing, labor and consumer spending data. She replaces former chief economist Skylar Olsen.
Editor’s note: Story updated with details from the company’s earnings call.