REG - LSL Property Svcs. - HALF YEAR RESULTS TO 30 JUNE 2025
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RNS Number : 6044Z LSL Property Services PLC 17 September 2025
17 September 2025
LSL Property Services plc ("LSL" or "Group")
HALF YEAR RESULTS TO 30 JUNE 2025
In-line results, continued operational progress and improved trading in H2 as
expected
LSL reports its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2025 with
Group Underlying Operating Profit of £14.8m (H1 2024: £14.4m) and underlying
operating margin maintained at 17%. Results are in line with the Board's
expectations with progress across all three divisions, technology enhancements
and expansion of the Group's footprint. The Board's expectations for the full
year remain unchanged.
Adam Castleton, Group Chief Executive of LSL, commented:
"We made positive progress in the first half of 2025, delivering revenue and
profit growth, while maintaining operating margin at its highest level for 15
years. We delivered structurally higher ROCE of over 30%, well above
historical levels.
"LSL is a well positioned business, as our three divisions add value at all
key points in the UK's property and mortgage lending ecosystem. We have a
capital light B2B platform for UK residential property market services. My
focus is on empowering our teams, capturing further operational improvements
in each division, and seizing the opportunity to leverage more of the Group's
collective strengths. Combined, these should deliver enhanced margins and
greater returns for shareholders.
"It is early days in my tenure as CEO, and I am excited about the growth
opportunities open to us as a Group. With 2025 on track, we are looking ahead
with renewed ambition and confidence about our future."
STRATEGIC AND OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
The Group's performance demonstrates the strengths of the LSL platform and the
benefits of a simpler Group structure. Our operating model remains capital
light, cash generative and delivers a high return on capital employed compared
with historical levels. Key highlights during the first half include:
· Investing for growth in digital and systems:
o Development and roll-out of a new CRM system in Financial Services, to
drive productivity for LSL and its clients
o Approaching commercialisation of automated valuation models ("AVM") with
our lenders, a new revenue stream for Surveying & Valuation
· Continuing to add scale:
o Three new branch openings in Estate Agency Franchising and provided
support for three lettings books acquisitions by franchisees
o Renewed contract with a top three lender and added a new lender in
Surveying & Valuation
o B2C revenue growth of 43% on last year in Surveying & Valuation
· Other operational highlights:
o Pivotal Growth JV continues to gain scale with 19 acquisitions to date and
a strong M&A pipeline
o Central costs reduced to £5.0m (H1 2024: £5.5m)
o Strong year-on-year trading performance of TenetLime acquisition
o Winner of 2025 Moneyfacts Awards - PRIMIS, Mortgage Network of the Year
and e.Surv, Best Surveying Service of the Year
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
Key Financials(1) Unaudited Unaudited Period on period change
6 months to 30.06 2025 6 months to 30.06
2024
Group Revenue (£m) 89.7 85.4 5%
Group Underlying Operating Profit(2) (£m) 14.8 14.4 3%
Group Underlying Operating margin (%) 17% 17% -
Group Operating Profit (£m) 11.0 13.0 (15)%
Profit Before Tax (£m) 11.3 13.8 (18)%
Cash Flow from Operations (Adjusted)(3) (£m) 7.4 11.7 (37)%
Net Cash(3) at 30 June (£m) 22.0 32.5 (32)%
Basic Earnings per Share (pence) 8.1 9.9 (19)%
Adjusted Basic Earnings per Share(3) (pence) 11.0 11.0 -
Interim Dividend per share (pence) 4.0 4.0 -
· Group Revenue of £89.7m (H1 2024: £85.4m). Revenue up 5% in a
recovering market, maintaining our strong market share in all three divisions.
· Group Underlying Operating Profit of £14.8m (H1 2024: £14.4m). Up
3%, including strategic investments in the business and absorbing NIC tax
increase
· Group Underlying Operating Margin at 17% (H1 2024: 17%). This
remained in line with the 15-year high reported in the prior period
· Group Operating Profit of £11.0m (H1 2024: £13.0m). Exceptional
costs of £1.8m (H1 2024: net cost £0.1m)
· Adjusted Operating Cash Flow of £7.4m (H1 2024: £11.7m). Reduction
on H1 2024 a result of the timing of working capital movements around year end
December 2024. Last 12 months cash conversion of 95%
· Last 12 Months' ROCE of 31% (2024: 29%). Continued higher returns
under the new operating model compared to historical levels (2016 - 2023: 18%)
· Net Cash(3) of £22.0m at 30 June 2025 (31 December 2024: £32.4m, 30
June 2024: £32.5m)
· Interim dividend declared of 4.0p per share (H1 2024: 4.0p) and
£1.4m deployed on share buyback programme during the period
CURRENT TRADING AND OUTLOOK
We have made a good start to H2 and continue to expect the Group to deliver a
further increase in underlying profit in FY 2025, in line with market
expectations. Our end markets have been operating in line with our
assumptions. July was the strongest refinancing month of the year so far, as
we expected. Mortgage pipelines are above historic norms, underpinning an
expected uplift in refinancing activity across the rest of the year.
The Board is confident in the Group's prospects and its ability to capture the
value accretive growth opportunities ahead underpinned by continued
investments.
Results presentation
This announcement together with the associated investors' presentation will be
available on:
https://www.lslps.co.uk/investor-information/investor-communications
(https://url.uk.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/zjUACoZq4fVJoQKH1fltpAqB0?domain=lslps.co.uk)
For further information, please contact:
Adam Castleton, Chief Executive Officer
Phil Clark, Investor Relations
LSL Property Services plc investorrelations@lslps.co.uk (mailto:investorrelations@lslps.co.uk)
Helen Tarbet
Toto Berger
Jesse McNab
Burson Buchanan 0207 466 5000 / LSL@buchanan.uk.com (mailto:LSL@buchanan.uk.com)
Notes:
1 Stated on basis of continuing operations unless otherwise
stated. Following the conversion of the entire owned estate agency network to
franchises in H1 2023, the previously owned network was classified as a
discontinued operation and is now presented as such in the Financial
Statements. Refer to note 6 to the Financial Statements
2 Group (and Divisional) Underlying Operating Profit is
stated before exceptional items, contingent consideration assets &
liabilities, amortisation of intangible assets and share-based payments. From
2025 onwards, it also includes other sources of earnings from joint ventures
("JV"), such as loan notes issued to the JVs. This measure is reported to the
Directors as it is considered to provide a consistent indication of both Group
and Divisional underlying performance. Refer to note 5 to the Financial
Statements for reconciliation of Group and Divisional Underlying Operating
Profit to statutory operating profit/(loss) for continuing operations
3 Refer to note 5 to the Financial Statements for the
calculation
Notes on LSL
LSL is one of the largest providers of services to mortgage intermediaries and
estate agent franchisees.
Over 2,600 advisers representing around 11% of the total purchase and
remortgage market.
Its 63 estate agency franchisees operate 294 branches.
LSL is also one of the UK's largest providers of surveying and valuation
services, supplying five out of the six largest lenders in the UK.
For further information please visit LSL's website: lslps.co.uk
(https://url.avanan.click/v2/r02/___http:/www.lslps.co.uk/___.YXAxZTpzaG9yZWNhcDphOm86Yjk0NzFiODIyY2U2MmM3MzBhMDU4MDc5Y2Y0NWZhYjc6NzoyNzkwOmUwNTdjYjVhYmMwNmExM2IxYTQ2M2YwYjY5M2JiZDM0ZThiMzNiZGU2ZTY3M2I0YmRhNDE4M2Q3N2Q0MjYyMjk6cDpGOk4)
LEI: 213800T4VM5VR3C7S706
GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE'S REVIEW
This is my first set of results since I became CEO on 1 May 2025, and I am
pleased to report financial and operational progress in the ongoing evolution
of LSL. We have a well positioned business: our three divisions add value at
all key points in the UK's property and mortgage lending ecosystem. This gives
us a capital light B2B platform for UK residential property market services,
well positioned to capture benefits from further leverage of the Group's
collective strengths to deliver sustained growth.
In the first few months of my tenure, I have been spending significant time
with colleagues, business partners and shareholders. This exercise has served
to reinforce the strengths of LSL; a property platform with three divisions,
each with leading market positions, and people and partners with incredibly
deep knowledge and expertise in our markets, all underpinning LSL's strength.
I am very focused on our people and culture, looking to empower our teams,
enhance accountability, and capture accretive operational improvements. I have
been working closely with the senior leadership team, using our recently
implemented incentive programme to ensure our teams' common interests are
fully aligned and set on the goal of growth and value creation. Our property
services platform carries untapped value, and we must utilise our data,
knowledge and experience to continue to innovate and ensure our wider teams
are ambitious in capturing the Group's growth prospects.
LSL was founded 21 years ago, and its success has been built on deep domain
knowledge and expertise, organisational resilience, opportunistic deal making,
an independent and entrepreneurial business culture, and a cautious approach
to risk. We plan to build on the foundations of this success, raising our
sights by leveraging more of the Group's collective strengths. Much is already
happening within the business, and we will continue to build on our strong
foundations to deliver substantial organic growth, enhanced margins, and
greater returns to shareholders.
LSL provides mission critical services throughout the entire property
ecosystem, backed by rich data, enabling our customers to make smarter
decisions and delivering better outcomes at all points of the value chain. We
have the advantage of scale and can use it to drive operational excellence and
efficiency across the Group.
Given our strength across residential and financial services, we remain
cognisant of the continued regulatory focus the sector receives and the
necessity to appropriately respond to developments. We believe that this
increased regulatory focus will consolidate demand towards the larger
operators, such as ourselves, and indeed that there is scope for us to benefit
from a tightened regulatory environment as our scale and expertise enables us
to offer best-in-class advice and support to our customers.
Whilst it is early days in my tenure as CEO, I am excited about the compelling
growth opportunities open to us as a Group.
Review of H1 2025 Performance
We made positive progress in the first half of 2025, delivering revenue and
underlying profit growth with underlying operating margin maintained at its
highest level for 15 years. We continue to deliver structurally higher ROCE of
over 30%, well above historical levels.
Revenue increased by 5% to £89.7m (H1 2024: £85.4m) in a recovering market
and we maintained our strong market share in all three divisions. Growth was
underpinned by additional lettings books acquisitions, continued B2C growth in
Surveying and some targeted pricing action.
Group Underlying Operating Profit(1) was up 3% to £14.8m (H1 2024: £14.4m)
and the Underlying Operating margin of 17% remained in line with the 15-year
high reported in the prior period (H1 FY24: 17%). We continued to invest in
our businesses (c.£1m) and absorbed c.£0.5m of cost due to the NI tax
increase introduced on 1 April. Financial Services and Estate Agency
Franchising profit remained broadly flat, and Surveying & Valuation
returned to a more normalised operating margin level of 22% (H1 2024: 26%, H2
2024 20%). Central costs reduced £0.5m to £5m, which is a more normalised
level. The Pivotal Growth JV delivered improved profitability as it continues
to scale. On a statutory basis, Group Operating Profit was £11.0m (H1 2024:
£13.0m), after exceptional costs of £1.8m (H1 2024: £0.1m).
As expected, the changes to Stamp Duty on 1 April 2025 led to a spike in
housing transactions, resulting in an improvement in market activity, whilst
interest rate uncertainty continued to suppress refinancing volumes, which
were 10% lower than prior year. We held our strong share in each of our
markets and are well positioned to take advantage of the increased refinancing
activity expected in H2.
Capital Allocation
Our targeted programme of investment continues. The roll out of our new CRM
system within Financial Services is continuing and, once complete, will
improve productivity for LSL and our clients. In addition, we are working hard
on commercialising our AVM in Surveying & Valuations, which was
successfully tested with a top five lender in the period under review, and are
in active discussions with a broader set of lenders. Once commercialised, this
will provide an additional product within our portfolio.
We are supporting bolt-on letting acquisitions by our franchisees within
Estate Agency, creating increased scale for our lettings business. In
addition, the Pivotal Growth JV completed two bolt-on acquisitions post-period
end, and continues to build scale. All of these are expected to support
delivery of attractive returns ahead of the Group's cost of capital.
We returned capital to shareholders by way of our continuing share buyback
scheme and have declared an interim dividend of 4.0p per share.
Net cash at the period end was £22.0m. I believe that maintaining a healthy
cash reserve will provide the business with competitive advantages in the
current economic environment and provides us with flexibility to continue to
deploy capital both organically, as plans for the Group progress, and
inorganically where compelling opportunities arise, balanced with returns to
shareholders where appropriate.
Current Trading and Outlook
We have made a good start to H2 and continue to expect the Group to deliver a
further increase in underlying profit in FY 2025, in line with market
expectations. Our end markets have been operating in line with our
assumptions. July refinancing was the strongest refinancing month of the year
so far, as we expected. Mortgage pipelines are above historic norms,
underpinning an expected uplift in refinancing activity across the rest of the
year.
The Opportunities Ahead
The UK residential property and lending industry is worth c.£800 billion per
annum, and LSL has market leading positions across the ecosystem. As such, we
have a number of compelling opportunities to grow and to leverage our
collective strengths.
We are working at pace on new organic initiatives whilst driving forward
success in our core businesses and increasingly working together for the
benefit of the wider Group. I am grateful for the commitment and support of my
exceptionally able and talented colleagues across the Group; they are key in
driving LSL forward.
I am fully committed to ensuring the Group embraces positive change to take
advantage of the exciting opportunities ahead.
Adam Castleton
Group Chief Executive Officer
16 September 2025
Notes:
1 Group (and Divisional) Underlying Operating Profit is
before exceptional items, contingent consideration assets & liabilities,
amortisation of intangible assets and share-based payments. From 2025 onwards,
it also includes other sources of earnings from joint ventures ("JV"), such as
loan notes issued to the JVs. This measure is reported to the Directors as it
is considered to provide a consistent indication of both Group and Divisional
underlying performance. Refer to note 5 to the Financial Statements for
reconciliation of Group and Divisional Underlying Operating Profit to
statutory operating profit/(loss) for continuing operations
BUSINESS & FINANCIAL REVIEW
Business Review
H1 P&L (£m) 2025 Var
2024
Divisional Group Revenue
Surveying & Valuation 53.2 48.9 9%
Financial Services 23.5 23.6 (0)%
Estate Agency Franchising 13.0 12.9 1%
Group Revenue 89.7 85.4 5%
Divisional Underlying Operating Profit/(Loss) (2)
Surveying & Valuation 11.9 12.9 (8)%
Financial Services Network 4.3 4.3 0%
Pivotal joint venture 0.5 (0.4) 225%
Financial Services 4.8 3.9 23%
Estate Agency Franchising 3.2 3.1 0%
Central Costs (5.0) (5.5) 10%
Group Underlying Operating Profit from continuing operations 14.8 14.4 3%
Divisional operating profit/(loss) (1)
Surveying & Valuation 11.6 12.9 (10)%
Financial Services 2.4 2.9 (18)%
Estate Agency Franchising 2.7 2.6 4%
Central Costs (5.6) (5.3) (5)%
Group operating profit from continuing operations 11.0 13.0 (15)%
Estate Agency - discontinued operations (0.2) (0.3) 53%
Group Operating Profit from total operations 10.8 12.7 (15)%
Notes:
1 Following the conversion of the entire owned estate agency
network to franchises in H1 2023, the previously owned network was classified
as a discontinued operation and is now presented as such in the Financial
Statements. Refer to note 6 to the Financial Statements
2 Group (and Divisional) Underlying Operating Profit is
before exceptional items, contingent consideration assets & liabilities,
amortisation of intangible assets and share-based payments. From 2025
onwards, it also includes other sources of earnings from joint ventures
("JV"), such as interest received on loan notes issued to the JVs. This
measure is reported to the Directors as it is considered to provide a
consistent indication of both Group and Divisional underlying performance.
Refer to note 5 to the Financial Statements for reconciliation of Group and
Divisional Underlying Operating Profit to statutory operating profit/(loss)
for continuing operations
Surveying & Valuation Division
Our Surveying & Valuation division has performed well, following increased
allocations from existing customers, winning new contracts, and improving
contract terms with no allocation losses. This continued in 2025, as surveyor
utilisation rates returned to historic high levels and our emerging B2C
business continued to deliver strong growth. The Group's asset management
business is included within the Surveying & Valuation division.
· Surveying & Valuation performance was robust, reflecting the
benefit of contract extensions with improved terms as well as operational
efficiency across the division
· Surveying & Valuation revenue increased by 9% to £53.2m (H1
2024: £48.9m), reflecting a 7% increase in jobs performed and 2% increase in
income per job
· Asset Management revenues remained flat with H1 2024 at £2.6m. The
market remains below long-run trend levels. Profit was flat at £1.2m (H1
2024: £1.2m)
· Surveying Underlying operating profit decreased to £10.7m (H1
2024: £11.7m), primarily due to normalised surveyor incentives and investment
in our data strategy with our AVM development which we expect to deliver
revenue in Q4 2025 and onwards. The statutory operating profit was £11.6m (H1
2024: £12.9m)
· Underlying operating margin was 22% (H1 2024: 26%), reflecting
normalised commission levels for Surveyors during the period. The statutory
operating margin was 22% (H1 2024: 26%)
· We estimate that our market share of physical and remote valuation
instructions(7) was around 37% (H1 2024: 38%), reflecting lender mix movements
· Good progress continues to be made against strategic objectives to
develop new surveying and valuation income from the end customer: B2C revenue
increased by 43% to £4.0m (H1 2024: £2.8m), reflecting both the 38% increase
in jobs performed and the 3% increase in income per job on the comparative
period last year
· Our AVM product is expected to generate its first revenues during Q4
2025 and we are in discussions with several lenders
Financial Services Division
We have reinforced the leading position of our PRIMIS network in the provision
of services to independent mortgage brokers, with a renewed focus on smaller,
mortgage-led financial services businesses. At 30 June 2025, PRIMIS members
totalled 2,245 advisers who sell mortgage and protection (30 June 2024: 2,312)
and 392 advisers selling only protection and general insurance products (30
June 2024: 535).
In December 2024, we announced a major programme of investment to enhance the
technology solutions provided to PRIMIS advisers to improve efficiency and
sales performance and underpin our leading market position. The rollout is
progressing well, and we remain on track to spend £3m in 2025 on this
project.
Our Financial Services Division is reported in two business lines: our core
Financial Services Network business comprising PRIMIS and TMA mortgage club,
and our share of profit after tax of the Pivotal Growth JV.
· Total UK new mortgage lending increased by 22% to £134bn. LSL new
mortgage lending grew by 23% to £15.2bn. Thus, the Group increased market
share of the UK purchase and remortgage market(3) to 11.3% (H1 2024: 11.2%)
· LSL advisers continue to adapt effectively to changes in the mortgage
market, increasing total revenue by 3% to £22.6m in a market which was around
5% higher. The weighting of margin dilutive product transfers in the
refinancing market remained above the long-term average
· The number of Network firms reduced by 5% to 1,084 as at 30 June 2025
(H1 2024: 1,146) as we reduced our numbers in protection only.
· TenetLime profit contribution was in line with expectations, with the
acquisition on track to deliver returns in excess of cost of capital
· Financial Services underlying operating profit was £4.8m (H1 2024:
£3.9m). The statutory operating profit was £2.4m (H1 2024: £2.9m)
· Underlying operating margin was 18% (H1 2024: 18%). The statutory
operating margin was 10% (H1 2024: 12%)
· Network protection revenue reduced by 12% to £6.6m (H1 2024:
£7.6m), reflecting the impact of strategic repositioning away from
protection-only brokers
· Our share of profits after tax in the Pivotal Growth JV was £0.1m
(H1 2024: loss of £0.4m). The trading EBITDA of Pivotal (before transactional
acquisition costs) was materially ahead of last year. The Group also
recognised interest income of £0.4m in H1 2025 relating to loan notes issued
to Pivotal
· The Financial Services Network business has a regulatory capital
requirement which represents 2.5% of its regulated revenues. The regulatory
capital requirement was £6.2m at 30 June 2025 (31 December 2024: £6.4m; 30
June 2024: £6.4m), with a surplus of £28.0m (31 December 2024: £27.6m)
Pivotal Growth JV
Pivotal continues to gain momentum and has to date acquired 19 businesses,
including 2 acquisitions completed in Q3 2025 with a strong M&A pipeline.
· Pivotal Growth now has over 500 advisers, making it one of the UK's
largest mortgage and protection brokers, giving it critical mass to leverage
its scale to attract deals and drive revenue synergies and profitability
· The Group's results include positive contribution to pre-tax profit
from the JV during the first half as Pivotal continues to add scale and
benefit from operational efficiency
· Pivotal remains on track to deliver returns ahead of cost of capital
Estate Agency Franchising Division
We have now completed two years of trading as a fully franchised model for our
Estate Agency business. Our strategic focus is on further enhancing our
franchising expertise to bring on new partners, expanding our geographic
reach, and developing our services for franchisees.
· The Estate Agency Franchise business delivered a robust residential
sales performance, with the total number of exchange units 17% above 2024 in a
market(9) which was also 17% ahead. Estate Agency Franchising revenue was
£13.0m (H1 2024: £13.0m)
· We continued to support the growth of franchisees, including loans
granted to facilitate 3 lettings book acquisitions, adding over 600 properties
to the lettings portfolio during H1 2025. These deals will deliver returns
in excess of the Group's cost of capital. The average lettings income per
managed property was up c.+3% with total number of properties in line with the
comparable period last year
· Estate Agency Franchising underlying operating profit was £3.2m (H1
2024: £3.1m). The statutory operating profit was £2.7m (H1 2024: £2.6m)
· Underlying operating margin was 24% (H1 2024: 24%). The statutory
operating margin was 21% (H1 2024: 20%)
· The number of properties under franchisees' management remained
stable at 37,246 (30 June 2024: 36,952)
· Total of 313 territories at 30 June 2025 (30 June 2024: 307),
representing 65% UK postcode coverage
Financial Review
Group Income Statement(1) Summary
Profitability Progress: The Group has delivered 5% or £4.3m growth in revenue
period on period, after the downward effects of exiting a number of
protection-only adviser firms, and a contraction in activity in Land and New
Homes due to a contract loss. On this additional revenue the Group has
maintained overall margin at historical high levels of 17% (on underlying
operating profit). This margin has been constrained by additional costs in
some areas, such as the investments into CRM and Data-driven products. In
addition, surveyor costs have returned to more normalised levels.
Group Revenue increased 5% to £89.7m (H1 2024: £85.4m) in a total lending
market that was around 5% higher and housing market up by 17%. The increase
was primarily in the Surveying & Valuation division with a 9% increase
year on year, driven by a 10% increase in total Bank of England mortgage
approvals. The Estate Agency Franchising division remained broadly flat,
however, residential sales increased significantly by 24% in H1 2025 compared
to H1 2024 but was offset by a reduction in Land & New Homes revenues.
Group Underlying Operating Profit(2) increased overall to £14.8m (H1 2024:
£14.4m), with a year-on-year improvement in Central costs and Pivotal Growth
JV contribution, alongside strategic investments including CRM and Data. There
was a fall in the Surveying and Valuation division due to increased surveyor
incentive payments and continued investment in AVM development. Group
Underlying Operating margin remained at 17%, maintaining the highest margin
for over 15 years, particularly reflecting high surveyor utilisation in
Surveying & Valuation.
Group Operating Profit decreased to £11.0m (H1 2024: £13.0m), due to the
normalisation of surveyor incentive payments, £1.8m of exceptional costs
across the Group and TenetLime Limited legal costs in the Financial Services
Division, offset by an improvement in trading performance in the period.
Adjusted operating expenditure(3), comprises employee costs, other operating
costs, and depreciation and totalled £75.3m in 2025, 6% higher than prior
year (H1 2024: £70.9m), with the movement comprising the net effect of
employee cost increases of £3.0m in Surveying & Valuation (arising from
9% increase in revenues and the increase in surveyor incentives), Central
costs down by £0.5m to £5.0m (H1 2024: £5.5m) due to a reduction in
salary and bonus costs, audit fee reductions and lower strategy support costs,
and increased cost of £0.5m due to the National Insurance rise from 1(st)
April 2025.
Exceptional items(5) There were no gains in H1 2025 (H1 2024: £0.4m). The
prior year gain related to the increase in contingent consideration receivable
on the disposal of Group First (£0.3m) and release of dilapidation provision
(£0.1m). Exceptional costs of £1.8m (H1 2024: £0.5m), are primarily due to
restructuring costs in Financial Services (£0.6m), Central CEO and CFO change
costs (£0.7m) and costs incurred as a result of the administration of
TenetLime's seller, Tenet Group Limited (£0.5m). The H1 2024 exceptional
costs were primarily a decrease in contingent consideration receivable on the
disposal of RSC and EFS (£0.3m) and corporate transaction costs.
Taxation The tax charge of £2.9m (H1 2024: £3.6m) represents an effective
tax rate of 26.0% (H1 2024: 26.0%), slightly up on UK tax rate of 25.0% due to
some non-deductible expenditure.
Dividend. The solid performance in H1 2025 underpins the Board's confidence in
the Group's businesses. The Board has declared an interim dividend of 4.0
pence per share (2024: 4.0 pence). The Group's dividend policy continues to be
a pay-out of 30% of Group Underlying Operating Profit after finance and
normalised tax charges(3). The ex-dividend date for the interim dividend is 2
October 2025, with a record date of 3 October 2025 and a payment date of 7
November 2025. Shareholders can elect to reinvest their cash dividend and
purchase additional shares in LSL through a dividend reinvestment plan. The
election date is 17 October 2025.
Share buyback. The Board's approach to capital allocation is unchanged. To
date, £3.0m of the share buyback programme announced on 25 April 2024 has
been deployed. Shore Capital will undertake the remainder of the share buyback
programme in place of Numis Securities Limited. The share buyback programme
will continue until it reaches the programme's maximum consideration of £7m.
Group Statement of Cash flows Summary
Cash Generation: The Group maintains a healthy cash balance at £22.0m at 30
June 2025. In the period Cash Flow was impacted by net working capital flows
that enhanced the cash balance at the end of December 2024. This has unwound
in the period leading to a net outflow of working capital. Operating cash flow
remains robust and positive and is expected to normalise in H2.
The Group remains cash generative, with operating cash flows before working
capital movements of £16.0m (H1 2024: £16.2m), broadly in line with H1 2024
reflecting the higher underlying operating profits generated in 2025 and the
reduced Central costs. The Group is cash generative and ordinarily achieves a
cash flow conversion rate(3) of 75% to 100%. The ratio in 2025 was 50% (H1
2024: 81%) reflecting timing impact of collections processed at year end,
adversely affecting working capital movements, with a £7.5m outflow in H1
2025 (H1 2024: £2.8m outflow). Management continues to monitor cash flow
performance closely and expects its cash conversion rate to return to a
normalised level in H2 2025.
Key cash outflows in H1 2025 included:
· Capital expenditure on Property Plant and Equipment ("PPE") and
intangibles of £2.5m (H1 2024: £1.2m)
· Exceptional costs paid in relation to Tenet group administration
process costs, divisional restructures, dilapidation and AR provision
utilisation in 2025 of £2.4m (H1 2024: £1.5m)
· Payment of the 2024 final dividend of £7.6m (H1 2024: £7.6m) and
the repurchase of shares under the share buyback programme of £1.4m (H1 2024:
£0.3m)
· Loans to franchisees to support lettings books' acquisitions of
£0.9m (H1 2024: £nil)
· Corporation tax paid in 2025 of £3.1m as the Group returns to more
normalised taxable profits (H1 2024: £nil)
Bank facilities
In January 2025, LSL agreed an amendment and restatement of its banking
facility, putting in place a £60m committed revolving credit facility, with a
maturity date of January 2030, replacing a £60m facility maturing in May
2026. The terms have remained materially the same as the previous facility,
provided by the same syndicate members as before, Barclays Bank UK plc,
NatWest Bank plc and Santander UK plc. For further flexibility to support
growth, the facility retains a £30m accordion, on request by LSL, subject to
bank approval.
Group Balance Sheet Summary
Robust balance sheet: the Group retains a healthy balance sheet with strong
liquidity. In addition to cash balances of £22.0m, the bank facility of £60m
remains unutilised. The capital-light model of franchising leads to high and
increasing ROCE of 31% over the last 12 months, up from 29%.
Assets
· Goodwill and Intangibles: These asset classes remain largely
unchanged in the period.
· PPE: Capital expenditure on owned PPE was £0.9m (H1 2024: £0.3m),
reflecting ongoing IT investment across all divisions. There has also been
£2.3m of additions in new offices and car lease agreements.
· Financial assets: During H1 2023 the Group disposed of Group First,
RSC and Embrace B2C brokerage businesses to Pivotal Growth, with contingent
consideration receivable in 2025 based on 7x 2024 EBITDA performance. As at 30
June 2024, the asset is recorded at £5.7m (31 December 2024: £5.8m, H1
2024: £5.3m). In September 2025, the Group received final contingent
consideration of £5.4m after working capital adjustments.
· Loans to joint venture: In December 2024, the Group provided funding
of £7.6m to Pivotal Growth in the form of 10% unsecured loan notes. No
repayments were made in H1 2025 with £0.4m interest income recognised during
the period.
· Investment in joint venture: Our 46.5% share of Pivotal Growth is
equity method accounted with minimal change in value
· Investment in subleases (total current and non-current): The Group
is now an intermediate lessor, following the Estate Agency conversion to a
wholly franchised model with the carrying value now only £0.5m.
· Loans to franchisees and appointed representatives (Network
firms): This total balance increased from £1.8m to £2.9m in the period. Loan
facility agreements are in place with franchisees of Estate Agency
Franchising. In H1 2025, the Group issued loans of £1.4m. Loans to FS
appointed representatives are granted to some brokers joining the PRIMIS
network and were £0.5m as at 30 June 2025.
Liabilities
· Financial liabilities (total current and non-current) - 30 June
2025: £10.0m (31 December 2024: £9.1m, 30 June 2024: £10.2m) Contingent
consideration liabilities - 30 June 2025: £3.3m (31 December 2024: £3.3m, 30
June 2024: £3.7m) These relate solely to the cost of acquiring the intangible
relationship assets in TenetLime in February 2024, with the consideration of
£3.3m adjusted at 30 June 2025 for the latest update of retained advisers and
discounting. IFRS 16 lease financial liabilities - 30 June 2025: £6.6m (31
December 2024: £5.8m, 30 June 2024: £6.6m) The movement in the period
reflects payment of lease liabilities of £1.5m and disposals on assignment to
franchisees of £0.2m, offset by new lease additions of £2.3m.
· Provision for liabilities (total current and non-current) - 30
June 2025: £11.4m (31 December 2024: £10.2m, 30 June 2024: £11.7m) PI claim
provisions of £3.1m (31 December 2024: £2.4m, 30 June 2024: £3.0m) include
the Surveying & Valuation PI provision of £2.2m (31 December 2024:
£1.9m, 30 June 2024: £2.3m), the Financial Services PI provision of £0.9m
(31 December 2024: £0.4m, 30 June 2024: £0.7m). The Group has recognised an
asset of £0.7m against received claims in other debtors at 30 June 2025 (31
December 2024: £0.3m, 30 June 2024: £0.5m). Dilapidations and restructuring
provisions relating to Estate Agency Franchising following the wholesale
franchising in 2023, totalled £5.9m at 30 June 2025 (31 December 2024:
£6.0m, 30 June 2024: £8.1m).
Notes:
1 Based on continuing operations unless otherwise stated.
Following the conversion of the entire owned Estate Agency network to
franchisees in H1 2023, this was classified as a discontinued operation and is
now presented as such in the Financial Statements. Refer to 6 to the Financial
Statements
2 Group (and Divisional) Underlying Operating Profit is
before exceptional items, contingent consideration assets & liabilities,
amortisation of intangible assets and share-based payments. Refer to note 5 to
the Financial Statements for reconciliation of Group and Divisional Underlying
Operating Profit to statutory operating profit/(loss) for continuing
operations
3 Refer to note 5 to the Financial Statements
4 Refer to note 10 to the Financial Statements
5 Refer to note 7 to the Financial Statements
6 Refer to note 6 to the Financial Statements
7 Number of approvals for lending secured on dwellings, BoE
Bankstats tables table A5.4 (Jul 2025)
8 Mortgage lending excluding product transfers - new
mortgage lending by purpose of loan, UK (BOE) - BoE Bankstats tables table
A5.3 (Jul 2025)
9 Number of residential property transaction completions
with value £40,000 or above, HMRC (Jul 2025)
Principal Risks and Uncertainties
The principal risks and uncertainties relating to the Group's operations are
disclosed on pages 35 to 38 of the Group's Annual Report and Accounts 2024
(which can be accessed on the Group's website: www.lslps.co.uk). Having
considered the principal risks and uncertainties, applicable for the six
months ended 30 June 2025, the Board has concluded that these remain the same
as those included within the Annual Report and Accounts 2024.
Directors' Responsibility Statement
Each of the Directors (as listed below) confirms that to the best of their
knowledge:
· The Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial Statements for
the period ended 30 June 2025 have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34
'Interim Financial Reporting'.
· The interim management report includes a fair view of the
information required by the Disclosure and Transparency Rules sections 4.2.7R
and 4.2.8R, namely:
(a) an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six
months of the financial year and their impact on the condensed set of
financial statements;
(b) a description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining
six months of the financial year;
(c) details of related-party transactions that have taken place in the first
six months of the current financial year and that have materially affected the
financial position or performance of the company during that period; and
(d) any changes in the related-party transactions described in the last annual
report that could have a material effect on the financial position or
performance in the period.
By order of the Board of Directors
Adam Castleton
Chief Executive Officer
16 September 2025
Board of Directors
Adrian Collins
Gabby Appleton
Adam Castleton
Darrell Evans
Sonya Ghobrial
James Mack
Michael Stoop
Interim Group Income Statement
for the six months ended 30 June 2025
Unaudited
Six months ended
30 June 30 June
2025
2024
Continuing operations: Note £'000 £'000
Revenue 4 89,671 85,394
Operating expenses:
Employee costs (53,680) (50,639)
Depreciation on property, plant and equipment and right-of-use assets (1,642) (1,600)
Other operating costs (19,976) (18,657)
Other gains - 325
Gains/(losses) from joint venture 89 (377)
Share-based payments (152) 57
Amortisation of intangible assets 10 (1,527) (1,357)
Exceptional gains 7 - 367
Exceptional costs 7 (1,753) (482)
Group operating profit 11,030 13,031
Finance income 1,160 1,434
Finance cost (890) (707)
Net finance income 270 727
Profit before tax from continuing operations 11,300 13,758
Taxation charge 9 (2,936) (3,574)
Profit for the period from continuing operations 8,364 10,184
Discontinued operations
Loss for period from discontinued operations 6 (121) (227)
Profit for the period 8,243 9,957
Attributable to:
Owners of the parent 8,186 9,945
Non-controlling interest 57 12
( ) ( ) 8,243 9,957
( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
Earnings per share from total operations (expressed as pence per share):
Basic 8.0 9.7
Diluted 7.9 9.6
Earnings per share from continuing operations (expressed as pence per share):
Basic 8.1 9.9
Diluted 8.0 9.8
Interim Group Statement of Comprehensive Income
There was no other comprehensive income during the six months ended 30 June
2025 (2024: £nil).
Interim Group Balance Sheet
as at 30 June 2025
Unaudited Audited
30 June 31 December 2024
2025
Note £'000 £'000
Non-current assets
Goodwill 16,855 16,855
Other intangible assets 10 29,945 29,861
Property, plant and equipment and right-of-use assets 7,882 6,401
Financial assets 11 762 762
Investment in sublease 11 152 447
Investment in joint venture 11,674 11,585
Loans to franchisees and appointed representatives 11 2,107 979
Total non-current assets 69,377 66,890
Current assets
Trade and other receivables 28,718 24,811
Financial assets 11 5,714 5,772
Loans to joint venture 11 7,989 7,607
Investment in sublease 11 373 385
Current tax asset 1,176 846
Loans to franchisees and appointed representatives 11 834 867
Cash and cash equivalents 12 48,962 60,663
Total current assets 93,766 100,951
Total assets 163,143 167,841
Current liabilities
Financial liabilities 13 (5,847) (5,597)
Trade and other payables (31,578) (36,778)
Bank overdrafts 12 (27,006) (28,264)
Provisions for liabilities 14 (8,609) (6,316)
Total current liabilities (73,040) (76,955)
Non-current liabilities
Financial liabilities 13 (4,119) (3,491)
Deferred tax liability (1,697) (1,642)
Provisions for liabilities 14 (2,807) (3,869)
Total non-current liabilities (8,623) (9,002)
Total liabilities (81,663) (85,957)
Net assets 81,480 81,884
Equity
Share capital 210 210
Share premium account 5,629 5,629
Share-based payment reserve 2,569 2,634
Shares held by employee benefit trust and share incentive plan (1,395) (1,510)
Treasury shares (6,187) (4,831)
Fair value reserve (385) (385)
Retained earnings 81,262 80,417
Equity attributable to the owners of the parent 81,703 82,164
Non-controlling interest (223) (280)
Total Equity 81,480 81,884
Interim Group Statement of Cash Flows
for the six months ended 30 June 2025
Unaudited
Six Months Ended
Note 30 June 2025 30 June
2024
Profit before tax from continuing operations 11,300 13,758
Loss before tax from discontinued operations (151) (317)
Profit before tax 11,149 13,441
Adjustments for:
Exceptional costs 6,7 1,923 799
Exceptional gains 7 - (367)
Depreciation of tangible assets 1,642 1,600
Amortisation of intangible assets 10 1,527 1,357
Share-based payments 152 (57)
(Gains)/loss from joint venture (89) 377
Revaluation of investments at fair value through the income statement 11 - (325)
Decrease in contract assets - 55
Finance income (1,160) (1,434)
Finance costs 890 707
Operating cash flows before exceptional items and movements in working capital 16,034 16,153
Movements in working capital
Increase in trade and other receivables (3,946) (3,758)
(Decrease)/increase in trade and other payables (4,608) 1,655
Increase/(decrease) in provisions 1,067 (732)
(7,487) (2,835)
Cash generated from operations before exceptional items 8,547 13,318
Interest paid (leases) (244) (215)
Interest received (leases) 21 61
Income taxes paid (3,142) -
Exceptional costs paid (2,392) (1,540)
Net cash generated from operating activities 2,790 11,624
Cash flows used in investing activities
Interest received 778 953
Payment of contingent consideration 13 - (65)
Receipt of contingent consideration 58 115
Franchisees and appointed representatives loans granted 11 (1,855) (433)
Franchisees and appointed representatives loan repayments 11 612 909
Receipt of lease income 280 463
Purchase of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets (2,531) (1,165)
Cash acquired on acquisition of subsidiary - 503
Acquisition of subsidiary - (5,695)
Net cash expended on investing activities (2,658) (4,415)
Cash flows used in financing activities
Repurchase of treasury shares (1,356) (336)
Proceeds from the exercise of share options 174 -
Refinance costs (540) -
Payment of lease liabilities (1,215) (1,733)
Dividends paid (7,638) (7,646)
Net cash expended in financing activities (10,575) (9,715)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents (10,443) (2,506)
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 32,399 34,971
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 12 21,956 32,465
Cash and cash equivalents are net of bank overdrafts, see note 12.
Interim Group Statement of Changes in Equity
Unaudited - for the six months ended 30 June
2025
Share- based payment reserve Shares held by employee benefit trust and share incentive plan
Share premium account
Share capital Treasury shares Fair value reserve Retained earnings Equity attributable to owners of the parent Non- controlling interest
Total
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
At 1 January 2025 210 5,629 2,634 (1,510) (4,831) (385) 80,417 82,164 (280) 81,884
Profit for the period - - - - - - 8,186 8,186 57 8,243
Total comprehensive income for the period - - - - - - 8,186 8,186 57 8,243
Exercise of options - - (140) 115 - - 201 176 - 176
Vested share options lapsed during the year - - (96) - - - 96 - - -
Dividend paid - - - - - - (7,638) (7,638) - (7,638)
Share-based payments - - 152 - - - - 152 - 152
Tax on share-based payments - - 19 - - - - 19 - 19
Shares repurchased into treasury - - - - (1,356) - - (1,356) - (1,356)
At 30 June 2025 210 5,629 2,569 (1,395) (6,187) (385) 81,262 81,703 (223) 81,480
During the six-month period to 30 June 2025 a total of 53,052 share options
were exercised relating to LSL's various share option schemes resulting in the
shares being sold by the Trust. LSL received £0.2m on exercise of these
options.
During the six-month period to 30 June 2025, LSL had repurchased 479,828 LSL
shares at an average cost of £2.82 per share.
Interim Group Statement of Changes in Equity
Unaudited - for the six months ended 30 June
2024
Share- based payment reserve Shares held by employee benefit trust and share incentive plan
Share premium account
Share capital Treasury shares Fair value reserve Retained earnings Equity attributable to owners of the parent Non- controlling interest
Total
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
At 1 January 2024 210 5,629 3,564 (2,871) (3,983) (385) 74,087 76,251 (306) 75,945
Profit for the period - - - - - - 9,945 9,945 12 9,957
Total comprehensive income for the period - - - - - - 9,945 9,945 12 9,957
Exercise of options - - (682) 986 - - (304) - - -
Vested share options lapsed during the year - - (591) - - - 591 - - -
Dividend paid - - - - - - (7,646) (7,646) - (7,646)
Share-based payments - - (57) - - - - (57) - (57)
Tax on share-based payments - - 148 - - - - 148 - 148
Shares repurchased into treasury - - - - (336) - - (336) - (336)
At 30 June 2024 210 5,629 2,382 (1,885) (4,319) (385) 76,673 78,305 (294) 78,011
During the six-month period to 30 June 2024 a total of 267,796 share options
were exercised relating to LSL's various share option schemes resulting in the
shares being sold by the Trust. LSL received £nil on exercise of these
options.
During the six-month period to 30 June 2024, LSL had repurchased 112,000 LSL
shares at an average cost of £3.00 per share.
Notes to the Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial Statements
1. Basis of preparation
The Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial Statements for the period
ended 30 June 2025 were approved by the LSL Board on 16 September 2025. LSL
Property Services plc ('the Company' or 'LSL') is a public limited company
incorporated and domiciled in England, United Kingdom. LSL and its
subsidiaries (together the 'Group') operates Financial Services, Surveying and
Valuation and Estate Agency Franchising businesses. Its registered address is
First Floor, Victoria House Hampshire Court, East Newcastle Business Park,
Scotswood Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, England, NE4 7YJ.
These condensed interim financial statements do not comprise statutory
accounts within the meaning of section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. The
financial information for the year ended 31 December 2024 is extracted from
the audited statutory accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024, which were
approved by the board of directors on 25 March 2025 and have been filed with
the Registrar of Companies. The auditor's report on those 2024 full year
statutory accounts was unqualified and did not contain an emphasis of matter
paragraph and did not make a statement under section 498 (2) or (3) of the
Companies Act 2006.
This Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial Statements has been
reviewed, not audited.
The Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial Statements for the period
ended 30 June 2025 have been prepared in accordance with UK adopted
International Accounting Standard 34 and the Disclosure Guidance and
Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority, and
should be read in conjunction with the Group's annual Financial Statements as
at 31 December 2024 which are included in LSL's Annual Report and Accounts
2024. The Group's annual Financial Statements for the year ending 31 December
2025 will be prepared in accordance with UK adopted International Accounting
Standards.
The Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial Statements do not include
all the information and disclosures required for a complete set of IFRS
Financial Statements. However, selected explanatory notes are included to
explain events and transactions that are significant to an understanding of
the changes in the Group's financial position and performance since the last
annual Financial Statements.
Going Concern
The UK Corporate Governance Code and IAS 1, Presentation of financial
statements, requires the Board to assess and report on the prospects of the
Group and whether the business is a Going Concern. In considering this
requirement, the Directors have taken into account the Group's forecast cash
flows, liquidity, borrowing facilities and related covenant requirements and
the expected operational activities of the Group.
The Group expects to continue to meet its day-to-day working capital
requirements through cashflows generated by its trading activities and
available cash resources (30 June 2025: £22.0m). In January 2025, LSL amended
and restated the previous RCF facility that had a maturity date of May 2026.
The renewed facility now matures in January 2030 with the same limit of
£60.0m on materially the same basis, including covenants. The Group has not
currently utilised the facility leaving £60m of available undrawn committed
borrowing facilities in respect of which all conditions precedent had been
met. The facility agreement contains financial covenants, including minimum
net debt to EBITDA ratio, which mean that, under downside scenarios, the full
facility would not be available in the going concern period.
The Directors have continued to run a variety of scenario models throughout
the year to help the ongoing assessment of risks and opportunities covering
the period to 31 December 2026 ("the going concern period"). In the scenarios,
the Directors considered both current trading and external industry data. In
developing a base case forecast the Directors have assumed inflation and
interest rates of 3.3% and 4.25%, respectively, for the duration of the Going
Concern period.
The Directors have performed a reverse stress test to determine the events and
circumstances which would need to arise in order to threaten the Group's
ability to continue as a going concern. Such scenarios would require a
significant reduction in market transaction volumes below the historical low
points experienced during the Global Financial Crisis and COVID pandemic
periods and in turn reduce Group revenue by c.25% compared to current
performance. Under such a scenario, all available cash balances would be
utilised and the facility would be unavailable due to financial covenants. If
severe downside scenarios arose, there are cost mitigations that could be
applied, as well as cash conservation action such as pausing dividend payments
and planned investments. The Directors have concluded that the likelihood of
such a severe scenario arising is remote and have concluded that there are no
plausible threats to the Group's ability to continue through the going concern
period. Therefore, the financial information has been prepared under the going
concern basis of preparation.
Having due regard to the scenarios above and after making appropriate
enquiries, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group and the
Company have adequate resources to remain in operation to 31 December 2026.
The Board has therefore continued to adopt the going concern basis in
preparing the Interim Condensed consolidated Financial Statements.
2. Significant accounting policy information
There are no accounting pronouncements which have become effective from 1
January 2025 that have a significant impact on the Interim Condensed
Consolidated Group Financial Statements. The accounting policies adopted in
the preparation of the Interim Condensed Consolidated Group Financial
Statements are consistent with those followed in the preparation of the
Group's Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2024, apart from
the following:
Alternative Performance Measures (APMs)
During the year, the Group revised its definition of Underlying Operating
Profit/(Loss) to also include other sources of earnings from its joint
ventures ("JVs"), such as interest income from loan notes issued to JVs; in
order to reflect the full economic benefit of the ownership of the JV which
forms part of the Group's underlying operations.
In line with this change, the Group has also revised its calculation of
adjusted profit after tax used in determining adjusted earnings per share
(EPS), to adjust for other sources of earnings from JVs. The calculation was
previously defined as Group Underlying Operating Profit/(Loss) adjusted for
profit/(loss) attributed to non-controlling interests, net finance cost
(excluding exceptional and contingent consideration items, discounting on
leases) less normalised tax. This change ensures consistency between the
Group's underlying operating profit/(loss) and its adjusted EPS.
Comparative figures have not been restated, as no other sources of earnings
other than the Group's share of the JV's profit after tax were recognised
prior to 2025.
3. Judgements and estimates
In preparing these Condensed Consolidated Interim Financial Statements, the
significant judgements made by management in applying the Group's accounting
policies and they key sources of estimation uncertainty were the same as those
that applied to the Group Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December
2024.
4. Segment analysis of revenue and operating profit
For the six months ended 30 June 2025 LSL has reported three operating
segments: Financial Services; Surveying & Valuation; and Estate Agency
Franchising.
The Chief Operating Decision Maker ("CODM") being the executive directors,
monitors the operating results of its segments separately for the purpose of
making decisions about resource allocation and performance assessment. Segment
performance is evaluated based on operating profit or loss which in certain
respects, as explained in the table below, is measured differently from
operating profit or loss in the Group Financial Statements. Head office costs,
Group financing (including finance costs and finance income) and income taxes
are managed on a Group basis and are not allocated to operating segments.
Within the Estate Agency Franchising operating segment, the only remaining
owned operations relate to the Group's new build residential sales and
conveyancing packaging businesses which are LSL Land & New Homes Ltd and
Homefast Property Services Limited, representing less than 10% of the Group's
total revenue.
The Group's asset management business is included within the Surveying &
Valuation division. Management deemed the Group's asset management operations,
including the class of customer for its services, are more closely aligned to
the Surveying & Valuation division after the Estate Agency division's
transformation into a franchise model.
Operating segments
The following tables present revenue followed by profit information regarding
the Group's operating segments for the six months ended 30 June 2025 and for
the six months ended 30 June 2024.
a) Revenue and operating profit by segment
Unaudited - Six months ended 30 June 2025
Income statement information
Financial Services Surveying Estate Agency Franchising
£'000 & Valuation £'000 Central Total
£'000 £'000 £'000
Total revenue from external customers 23,490 53,151 13,030 - 89,671
Segmental result:
Underlying operating profit/(loss) 4,766 11,875 3,169 (4,966) 14,844
Operating profit / (loss) 2,369 11,566 2,679 (5,584) 11,030
Finance income 1,160
Finance costs (890)
Profit before tax 11,300
Loss before tax from discontinued operations (151)
Taxation (2,906)
Profit for the period 8,243
Group Underlying Operating Profit is as defined in note 5 to these
Consolidated Condensed Financial Statements.
Estate Agency Franchising Central Total
Financial Services Surveying
& Valuation
Balance sheet information £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Segment assets - intangible 17,215 13,550 16,035 - 46,800
Segment assets - other 35,219 17,585 11,953 51,586 116,343
Total Segment assets 52,434 31,135 27,988 51,586 163,143
Total Segment liabilities (20,751) (18,214) (13,593) (29,105) (81,663)
Net assets 31,683 12,921 14,395 22,481 81,480
The Group's interests in joint ventures are reported within the Financial
Services segment. This classification reflects how the CODM monitors the joint
venture's operating results for the purposes of resource allocation and
performance evaluation.
Central net assets comprise PPE £0.5m, cash £49.0m, other assets £2.1m,
accruals and other payables of £(2.1)m, overdraft of £(27.0)m. Central
result comprises costs relating to the Parent Company.
Unaudited - Six months ended 30 June 2024
Income statement information
Financial Services Surveying Estate Agency Franchising
£'000 & Valuation £'000 Central Total
£'000 £'000 £'000
Total revenue from external customers 23,555 48,890 12,949 - 85,394
Segmental result:
Underlying Operating Profit 3,923 12,923 3,138 (5,538) 14,446
Operating profit / (loss) 2,891 12,877 2,566 (5,303) 13,031
Finance income 1,434
Finance costs (707)
Profit before tax 13,758
Loss before tax from discontinued operations (317)
Taxation (3,484)
Loss for the period 9,957
Group Underlying Operating Profit/(Loss) is as defined in note 5 to these
Consolidated Condensed Financial Statements.
Estate Agency Franchising Central Total
Financial Services Surveying
& Valuation
Balance sheet information £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Segment assets - intangible 18,040 12,132 16,895 - 47,067
Segment assets - other 24,730 15,360 7,531 75,846 123,467
Total Segment assets 42,770 27,492 24,426 75,846 170,534
Total Segment liabilities (14,758) (18,059) (17,427) (42,279) (92,523)
Net assets 28,012 9,433 6,999 33,567 78,011
The joint venture interests of the Group are recorded in the Financial
Services segment.
Central net assets comprise PPE £0.7m, cash £71.1m, other assets £4.0m,
accruals and other payables of £(3.6)m, overdraft of £(38.7)m. Central
result comprises costs relating to the Parent Company.
b) Disaggregation of revenue from contracts with customers:
Unaudited - Six months ended 30 June 2025
Revenue Split by Stream - Unaudited - Six Months ended 30 June 2025
Financial Services Surveying & Valuation Residential sales exchange Estate Agency Franchising income Asset Management Other £'000
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 Total
£'000
Timing of revenue recognition
Services transferred at a point in time 23,490 50,565 1,604 10,012 2,587 661 88,919
Services transferred over time - - - 752 - - 752
Total revenue from contracts with customers 23,490 50,565 1,604 10,764 2,587 661 89,671
Unaudited - Six months ended 30 June 2024
Revenue Split by Stream - Unaudited - Six Months ended 30 June 2024
Financial Services £'000 Surveying & Valuation Residential sales exchange Lettings Estate Agency Franchising income Asset Management Other £'000
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 Total
£'000
Timing of revenue recognition
Services transferred at a point in time 23,555 46,307 2,082 314 9,372 2,583 442 84,655
Services transferred over time - - - - 739 - - 739
Total revenue from contracts with customers 23,555 46,307 2,082 314 10,111 2,583 442 85,394
5. Adjusted performance measures (APMs)
In reporting financial information, the Group presents APMs which are not
defined or specified under the requirements of IFRS. The Group believes that
the presentation of APMs provides stakeholders with additional helpful
information on the performance of the business but does not consider them to
be a substitute for or superior to IFRS measures. Definitions and
reconciliations of the financial APMs used to IFRS measures, are included
below.
The Group reports the following APMs:
a) Group and Divisional Underlying Operating Profit/(Loss)
Underlying Operating Profit/(Loss) represents the profit/(loss) before tax for
the period before net finance cost, share-based payments, amortisation of
intangible assets, exceptional items and contingent consideration. From 2025
onwards, it also includes other sources of earnings from joint ventures
("JV"), such as loan notes issued to the JVs. This measure is reported to the
Directors as it is considered to provide a consistent indication of both Group
and Divisional underlying performance.
During the year, the Group revised its definition of Underlying Operating
Profit to also include other sources of earnings from its joint ventures
("JVs"), such as interest income from loan notes issued to JVs; in order to
reflect the full economic benefit of the ownership of the JV which forms part
of the Group's underlying operations.
Comparative figures have not been restated, as no other sources of earnings
other than the Group's share of the JV's profit after tax were recognised
prior to 2025.
Period ended 30 June 2025
Financial Services Surveying Estate Agency Franchising Central IFRS reported total from
& Valuation continuing
operations
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Profit/(loss) before tax 3,194 11,908 2.590 (6,392) 11,300
Net finance (income)/cost (825) (342) 89 808 (270)
Operating profit/(loss) per income statement 2,369 11,566 2,679 (5,584) 11,030
Operating Margin 10.1% 21.8% 20.6% - 12.3%
Adjustments:
Share-based payments 5 146 64 (63) 152
Amortisation of intangible assets 938 163 426 - 1,527
Exceptional costs (note 7) 1,072 - - 681 1,753
Interest income from loan notes to JV 382 - - - 382
Underlying Operating profit/(loss) 4,766 11,875 3,169 (4,966) 14,844
Underlying Operating Margin 20.3% 22.3% 24.3% - 16.6%
Period ended 30 June 2024
Financial Services Surveying Estate Agency Franchising Central IFRS reported total from
& Valuation continuing
operations
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Profit/(loss) before tax 3,641 13,265 2,799 (5,947) 13,758
Net finance (cost)/income (750) (388) (233) 644 (727)
Operating profit/(loss) per income statement 2,891 12,877 2,566 (5,303) 13,031
Operating Margin 12.3% 26.3% 19.8% - 15.3%
Adjustments:
Share-based payments 16 16 146 (235) (57)
Amortisation of intangible assets 859 72 426 - 1,357
Exceptional gains (note 7) (325) (42) - - (367)
Exceptional costs (note 7) 482 - - - 482
Underlying Operating profit/(loss) 3,923 12,923 3,138 (5,538) 14,446
Underlying Operating Margin 16.7% 26.4% 24.2% - 16.9%
b) Group and Divisional Underlying Operating Margin
Underlying Operating Margin is defined as Underlying Operating Profit divided
by revenue. Refer to above for the calculation of both Group and Divisional
Underlying Operating Margin. The closest equivalent IFRS measure to Underlying
Operating Margin is operating margin, refer to above for a reconciliation
between operating margin and Group Underlying Operating Margin.
c) Adjusted basic earnings per share, adjusted diluted earnings per
share and adjusted profit after tax
Adjusted basic earnings per share was defined as Group Underlying Operating
Profit/(Loss) adjusted for profit/(loss) attributed to non-controlling
interests, net finance cost (excluding exceptional and contingent
consideration items, discounting on leases) less normalised tax (to arrive at
adjusted profit after tax), divided by the weighted average number of shares
in issue during the financial period. The effect of potentially dilutive
ordinary shares is incorporated into the diluted measure. The closest
equivalent IFRS measures are basic and diluted earnings per share.
In line with the Group's change in definition of Underlying Operating
Profit/(Loss), the Group has also revised its calculation of adjusted profit
after tax used in determining adjusted earnings per share (EPS), to adjust for
other sources of earnings from JVs. This change ensures consistency between
the Group's underlying operating profit/(loss) and its adjusted EPS.
Unaudited
Six months ended
30 June 2025 30 June 2024
£'000 £'000
Group Underlying Operating Profit 14,844 14,446
Profit attributable to non-controlling interest (57) (12)
Net finance costs (excluding exceptional items, contingent consideration items (170) 588
and discounting on lease liabilities)
Other sources of earnings from JV 382 -
Normalised taxation (tax rate 25% (2024: 25%)) (3,750) (3,756)
Adjusted profit after tax before exceptional items, share-based payments and 11,249 11,266
amortisation
Unaudited - Six months ended 30 June
Adjusted profit after tax Weighted average number of shares 2025 Adjusted profit after tax Weighted average number of shares 2024
£'000 Per share amount £'000 Per share amount
Pence
Pence
Adjusted basic EPS 11,249 102,430,171 11.0 11,266 102,615,905 11.0
Effect of dilutive share options 922,288 830,587
Adjusted diluted EPS 11,249 103,352,460 10.9 11,266 103,446,492 10.9
d) Adjusted operating expenditure
Adjusted operating expenditure is defined as the total of employee costs,
depreciation on property, plant and equipment and other operating costs and is
considered to give a consistent indication of the Group's underlying operating
expenditure.
30 June 2025 30 June 2024
£'000 £'000
Total operating expenditure (78,641) (72,363)
Add back:
Other operating income - (325)
Share of post-tax (profit)/loss from joint venture (89) 377
Share-based payments 152 (57)
Amortisation of intangible assets 1,527 1,357
Exceptional gains (note 7) - (367)
Exceptional costs (note 7) 1,753 482
Adjusted operating expenditure (75,298) (70,896)
e) Net cash/debt
Net cash/debt is defined as cash and short-term deposits less current and
non-current borrowings, add IFRS 16 financial liabilities, deferred and
contingent consideration and where applicable cash held for sale.
30 June 2025 31 December 2024
Net Cash:
£'000 £'000
Cash and short-term deposits 48,962 60,663
Less: Interest-bearing loans and borrowings (including loan notes, overdraft,
IFRS 16 Leases, contingent and deferred consideration)
- Current (32,853) (33,861)
- Non-current (4,119) (3,491)
11,990 23,311
Add: IFRS 16 lease financial liabilities 6,636 5,783
Add: deferred and contingent consideration 3,330 3,306
Net Cash 21,956 32,399
f) Adjusted cash flow from operations
Adjusted cash flow from operations is defined as cash generated from
operations, less the repayment of the principal portion of lease liabilities,
plus the utilisation of PI provisions.
30 June 2025
30 June 2024
£'000 £'000
Cash generated from operations before exceptional items 8,547 13,318
Payment of principal portion of lease liabilities (1,215) (1,733)
PI provision utilisation 31 122
Adjusted cash flow from operations 7,363 11,707
g) Cash flow conversion rate
Cash flow conversion rate is defined as cash generated from operations (pre-PI
Costs and post-lease liabilities), divided by Group Underlying Operating
Profit.
30 June 2025 30 June 2024
£'000 £'000
Adjusted cash flow from operations 7,363 11,707
Group underlying operating profit from continuing operations 14,844 14,446
Cash flow conversion rate 50% 81%
6. Discontinued operations
In 2023, the Group franchised its entire owned estate agency network of 183
branches, with the operations of the previously owned network disposed to a
combination of new and existing franchisees between 3 May and 31 May 2023. The
operations of the branches were sold to the franchisees through either asset
or share sales. The operations of the owned branch network were classified as
a discontinued operation and presented as such in the Consolidated Condensed
Group Financial Statements, please refer to note 6 in the Group Financial
Statements for the year ended 31 December 2024 for further information.
During the six months to 30 June 2025 the Group recognised post tax losses
from discontinued operations of £0.1m (six months to 30 June 2024: £0.2m)
due to increases in dilapidation and restructuring provisions recognised as
part of the original asset and share sales, as per note 25 of the Group
Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2024.
7. Exceptional items
Unaudited
Six months ended
30 June 2025 30 June 2024
£'000 £'000
Exceptional costs:
Financial Services restructuring costs 563 -
Central CEO and CFO change costs 681 -
Financial Services post-acquisition support costs 509 -
Financial Services acquisition costs - 144
Reduction in contingent consideration receivable - 338
1,753 482
Exceptional gains:
Release of dilapidation provision - 42
Increase in contingent consideration receivable - 325
- 367
Exceptional costs
Financial Services restructuring costs
The Group initiated a restructuring programme in H1 2025, during which the
Financial Services division incurred non-recurring restructuring costs. In
addition, the division incurred exceptional consultancy and outsourcing
expenses following the unexpected departure of a senior executive due to
medical reasons. These costs were necessary to ensure continuity of leadership
and operational oversight through interim support and external consultancy
arrangements.
The exceptional costs relating to the above totalled £0.6m in H1 2025.
Central CEO and CFO change costs
In H1 2025 there were £0.7m of non-recurring exceptional costs in relation to
Group's CEO and CFO change.
Financial Services post-acquisition support costs
On 2 February 2024, the Group acquired the entire issued share capital of
TenetLime Limited ("TenetLime"), a subsidiary of Tenet Group Limited ("Tenet
Group"). As part of the purchase agreement, Tenet Group agreed to provide a
number of services to LSL after the transaction. Subsequent to the purchase,
LSL was notified that Tenet Group Limited entered administration on 5 June
2024. Additional costs to the Group as a consequence of the administration of
£0.5m are recognised as exceptional costs.
8. Dividends paid and declared
A final dividend in respect of the year ended 31 December 2024 of 7.4 pence
per share (December 2024: 7.4 pence per share) was paid to its equity
shareholders in the period ended 30 June 2025. An interim dividend has been
declared amounting to 4.0 pence per share (June 2024: 4.0 pence per share).
Interim dividends are recognised when paid.
9. Taxation
The major components of continuing income tax charge in the interim Group
income statements are:
Unaudited
Six Months Ended
30 June 30 June
2025 2024
£'000 £'000
UK corporation tax:
- current year charge 2,862 2,402
- adjustment in respect of prior years - (27)
2,862 2,375
Deferred tax:
Origination and reversal of temporary differences 74 1,227
Adjustment in respect of prior year - (28)
74 1,199
Total tax charge in the income statement 2,936 3,574
The total tax charge/(credit) in the income statement split between continuing
and discontinued operations is:
Unaudited
Six Months Ended
30 June 30 June
2025 2024
£'000 £'000
Continuing operations 2,936 3,574
Discontinued operations (30) (90)
Total tax charge in the income statement 2,906 3,484
The headline UK rate of corporation tax for the period is 25% (2024: 25%), and
the rate at which deferred tax has been provided is 25% (2024: 25%).
Income tax expense for the interim period is determined by applying
management's best estimate of the weighted-average income tax rate for the
annual period, adjusted for certain items fully applicable to the interim
period if needed, to profit or loss before tax.
The Group's consolidated effective tax rate in respect of continuing
operations for the six months ended 30 June 2025 was 25.5% (six months ended
30 June 2024: 26.0%).
10. Other intangible assets
Brand Customer contracts Lettings contracts Franchise agreements Relationship Asset Total
Software
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Cost
At 01 January 2025 6,911 625 - 12,766 21,490 9,295 51,087
Additions - - - - 1,611 - 1,611
At 30 June 2025 6,911 625 - 12,766 23,101 9,295 52,698
Amortisation and impairment
At 01 January 2025 - 625 - 1,899 17,928 774 21,226
Amortisation - - - 426 714 387 1,527
At 30 June 2025 - 625 - 2,325 18,642 1,161 22,753
Net book value
At 30 June 2025 6,911 - - 10,441 4,459 8,134 29.945
At 31 December 2024 6,911 - - 10,867 3,562 8,521 29,861
11. Financial assets
Unaudited Audited
Year Ended
30 June 2025 31 December 2024
£'000 £'000
(a) Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income
(FVOCI)
Unquoted shares at fair value - -
(b) Financial assets at fair value through income statement (FVPL)
Unquoted shares at fair value (Openwork units and Twenty7Tec) 762 762
Contingent consideration receivable 5,714 5,772
(c) Financial assets at amortised cost
Investment in sublease 525 832
Loans to joint venture 7,989 7,607
Loans to franchisees and appointed representatives 2,941 1,846
17,931 16,819
Non-current assets 3,021 2,188
Current assets 14,910 14,631
17,931 16,819
(a) Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income
Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income (FVOCI)
include unlisted equity instruments which are carried at fair value and
measured using level 3 valuation techniques. During 2023, the Group revalued
its investment in Global Property Ventures to £nil and there has been no
further change. The Group also holds an equity instrument in NBC Property
Master Limited which is carried at £nil value.
(b) Financial assets at fair value through income statement
Financial assets through profit or loss (FVPL) include unquoted units in
Twenty7Tec Group Limited and Openwork Partnership LLP, and contingent
consideration receivable which are carried at fair value and measured using
level 2 valuation technique, as well as contingent consideration receivable
which is fair valued using level 3 valuation technique. During the period no
gains/(losses) were recognised in the income statement:
30 June 2025 31 December 2024
£'000 £'000
Fair value gains on equity investments at FVPL recognised in other operating - 482
costs
Net fair value gain on contingent consideration recognised as exceptional - 163
Finance income recognised on contingent consideration receivable - 738
Openwork units
As at 30 June 2025, the fair value of the Group's investment in units held in
The Openwork Partnership LLP remained unchanged at £0.4m (31 December 2024:
£0.4m).
During the period, a minority investor acquired equity interest in The
Openwork Partnership LLP for cash consideration. While this transaction may
ordinarily be indicative of the fair value of the units, management has
assessed that the transaction occurred in an inactive market, at a scale
incomparable to the Group's holdings and does not reflect a price at which the
Group could reasonably expect to exit its holding.
The Group's valuation is based on the strike price from the most recent
trading window, adjusted to reflect an illiquidity discount. The illiquidity
discount has been applied to reflect limited trading volumes during the recent
trading windows.
Twenty7Tec
The Group's holdings in equity instrument in Twenty7Tec Group Limited remained
at £0.3m (31 December 2024: £0.3m). This is based on a recent external
valuation of the business and is therefore indicative of a fair value.
Contingent consideration receivable
Contingent consideration receivable of £5.7m relates to EFS, Group First and
RSC which were sold in H1 2023 to Pivotal Growth. The consideration receivable
will be 7x the combined EBITDA in calendar year 2024, subject to working
capital adjustments
In September 2025, the Group received final contingent consideration of £5.4m
after working capital adjustments.
Fair values of financial assets
There is no difference in the book amounts and fair values of all the Group's
financial assets that are carried in these Interim Condensed Consolidated
Group Financial Statements.
Fair value hierarchy
As at 30 June 2025, the Group held the following financial assets measured at
fair value. The Group uses the following hierarchy for determining and
disclosing the fair value of the financial assets by valuation technique:
· Level 1: quoted (unadjusted) prices in active markets for
identical assets;
· Level 2: other techniques for which all inputs which have a
significant effect on the recorded fair value are observable, either directly
or indirectly; and
· Level 3: techniques which use inputs which have a significant
effect on the recorded fair value that are not based on observable market
data.
Unaudited - 30 June 2025 Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Assets measured at fair value
Financial assets 6,476 - 762 5,714
Audited - 31 December 2024 Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Assets measured at fair value
Financial assets 6,534 - 762 5,772
(c) Financial assets measured at amortised cost
Financial assets measured at amortised cost include investment in subleases
and loans to franchisees and appointed representatives.
Investment in subleases
The Group recognises an investment in sublease in scenarios where it is an
intermediate lessor, and the sublease is classified as finance lease. On
recognition, the investment in sublease is valued as the remaining fixed
payments due from the sublessor, discounted at the discount rate implicit in
the headlease. The Group recognises finance income over the remaining life of
the leases. An expected credit loss has been provided against the investment
in sublease of £0.1m, applying a 12-month expected credit loss model.
Loans to franchisees and appointed representatives
The loans to franchisees and appointed representatives balance includes loans
to franchisees in the Estate Agency Franchising segment and loans to appointed
representatives in Financial Services segment.
The franchisee loans reflect drawdowns on agreed facilities which are
repayable in full over an agreed period and may bear fixed rate interest. The
Group has issued franchisee loans of £1.4m (2024: £0.2m) during the period
and has received principal repayments of £0.4m (2024: £0.1m), an expected
credit loss has been provided against the facility of £0.1m (2024: £0.1m)
applying a 12-month expected credit loss model.
The Group issues loans to appointed representatives in the normal course of
business and on standard terms, the duration is typically three years and the
loans are offered on an interest-free basis. The Group has issued loans to
appointed representatives of £0.3m during the period and received principal
repayments of £0.2m. An expected credit loss has been provided against the
remaining facility of £0.1m, applying a 12-month expected credit loss
model.
Loan notes receivable
In December 2024, the Group provided funding of £7.6m to its joint venture
Mottram TopCo Limited in the form of 10% unsecured loan notes. In 2025,
£0.4m interest income has been recognised. The loan notes were originally
redeemable in H1 2025. In June 2025, both parties agreed to amend the loan
maturity date to H2 2025.
12. Cash and cash equivalents
Bank overdrafts reflect the aggregate overdrawn balances of Group companies
(even if those companies have other positive cash balances). The overdrafts
are held with the Group's relationship banks.
For the purpose of the statement of cash flows, the Group's cash and cash
equivalents position is presented net, as shown below:
Unaudited Audited
Year Ended
30 June 31 December 2024
2025
£'000 £'000
Cash and cash equivalents 48,962 60,663
Bank overdrafts (27,006) (28,264)
Cash and cash equivalents 21,956 32,399
13. Financial liabilities
Unaudited Audited
Year Ended
30 June 31 December 2024
2025
£'000 £'000
Current
IFRS 16 lease financial liabilities 2,517 2,291
Contingent consideration liabilities 3,330 3,306
5,847 5,597
Non-current
IFRS 16 lease financial liabilities 4,119 3,491
4,119 3,491
Contingent consideration liabilities:
Unaudited Audited
Year Ended
30 June 31 December 2024
2025
£'000 £'000
TenetLime 3,330 3,306
Opening balance 3,306 65
Cash paid - (65)
Acquisition of relationship asset - 3,360
Amounts recorded though income statement 24 (294)
Closing balance 3,330 3,306
TenetLime Limited
On 2 February 2024, the Group acquired the entire issued share capital of
TenetLime Limited ("TenetLime"), a subsidiary of Tenet Group Limited ("Tenet
Group"). The value of the company was concentrated in the contracts with the
appointed representative firms. Consequently, the transaction was accounted
for as an asset acquisition and a relationship intangible asset was recognised
(see note 10). The cost paid for the relationship intangible asset represents
initial consideration of £5.7m and contingent consideration of £3.3m. The
contingent consideration is based on the retention rate of firms within LSL's
PRIMIS network 12 months after the transaction completed. contingent
consideration is based on the retention rate of firms within LSL's PRIMIS
network 12 months after the transaction completed.
As part of the purchase agreement, Tenet Group agreed to provide a number of
services to LSL after the transaction. Subsequent to the purchase, LSL was
notified that Tenet Group Limited entered administration on 5 June 2024. As at
the 30 June 2025, there are no additional liabilities recognised as a result
of the administration, though £1.0m of exceptional costs have been incurred
to date, and £0.5m in H1 2025. Management have assessed the potential future
costs that may arise for LSL due to Tenet Group Limited's administration and
remains in discussions with the administrators regarding these costs. As at
the reporting date, the Group had no legal or constructive obligation for any
future costs that may arise. Additionally, discussions are ongoing with the
administrators to offset these amounts against the contingent consideration
payable, which was to be settled originally in H1 2025 but has been delayed
due to an extension of the administration process to 4 June 2026.
Fair values of financial liabilities
There is no difference in the book amounts and fair values of all the Group's
financial liabilities that are carried in these Interim Condensed Consolidated
Group Financial Statements.
Fair value hierarchy
As at 30 June 2025, the Group held the following financial liabilities
measured at fair value. The Group uses the following hierarchy for determining
and disclosing the fair value of the financial instruments by valuation
technique:
· Level 1: quoted (unadjusted) prices in active markets for
identical liabilities;
· Level 2: other techniques for which all inputs which have a
significant effect on the recorded fair value are observable, either directly
or indirectly; and
· Level 3: techniques which use inputs which have a significant
effect on the recorded fair value that are not based on observable market
data.
As at 30 June 2025, the Group held financial liabilities valued using level 3
valuation technique of £3.3m (31 December 2024: £3.3m)
Risk management
The Group's principal financial instruments comprise of cash and cash
equivalents with access to a further £60m revolving credit facility which is
undrawn at the balance sheet date, and in January 2025, it was extended to
January 2030. The main purpose of these financial instruments is to raise
finance for the Group's operations and support its capital allocation policy.
The Group has various financial assets and liabilities such as trade
receivables, cash and short term deposits and trade payables, which arise
directly from its operations.
The Group is exposed through its operations to the following financial risks:
· interest rate risk;
· liquidity risk; and
· credit risk.
The policy for managing these risks is established by the Board following
recommendations from the Group Chief Financial Officer. Certain risks are
managed centrally, while others are managed locally following communications
from the Centre, and the methods used to manage these risks have not changed
since 31 December 2024. Further details of the risk management policies of the
Group are disclosed in note 31 of the Group's Financial Statements for the
year ended 31 December 2024.
14. Provisions
PI claim provisions Dilapidation Restructuring provision Appointed representative provision(1) Total
provision
Other
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Balance at 1 January 2025 2,339 5,110 918 1,247 571 10,185
Provided in financial year 1,075 402 13 859 - 2,349
Amount utilised (31) (255) (100) (284) - (670)
Amount released (239) (281) - (13) - (533)
Unwinding of discount - 85 - - - 85
Balance at 30 June 2025 3,144 5,061 831 1,809 571 11,416
Current liabilities 1,587 4,099 831 1,521 571 8,609
Non-current liabilities 1,557 962 - 288 - 2,807
3,144 5,061 831 1,809 571 11,416
( )
(1)During the period, the Group has reclassified £0.5m of opening balances
from commission refund liability within trade and other payables to appointed
representative provision. This reclassification reflects a more appropriate
presentation of the balance, which relates to obligations that are uncertain
in timing or amount and meet the definition of a provision under IAS 37.
15. Related party transactions
The Group is party to one joint venture partner, Mottram TopCo Limited.
Transactions with Mottram TopCo Limited (Pivotal Growth) and its subsidiaries
Unaudited
Six Months Ended
30 June 30 June
2025 2024
£'000 £'000
Revenue recognised 1,347 1,666
Trade receivable 262 465
Loan notes receivable 7,989 -
16. Events after the reporting period
In September 2025, the Group made a further equity investment of £2.6m into
Mottram Topco Limited. The Group also provided £5.3m funding by means of loan
notes, which are repayable in H2 2025.
During the same month, the Group received a contingent consideration of £5.4m
relating to the disposal of EFS, Group First, and RSC, which were sold to
Pivotal Growth in the first half of 2023. Further details can be found in Note
11.
Additionally, the Group provided loans totalling £1.4m to franchisees to
support the acquisition of additional lettings books.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains certain statements that are forward-looking. They
appear in a number of places throughout this announcement and include
statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations and those
of our officers, directors and employees concerning, amongst other things, our
results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth,
strategies and the business we operate. By their nature, these statements
involve uncertainty since future events and circumstances can cause results
and developments to differ materially from those anticipated. The
forward-looking statements reflect knowledge and information available at the
date of preparation of this update and, unless otherwise required by
applicable law, LSL undertakes no obligation to update or revise these
forward-looking statements. Nothing in this update should be construed as a
profit forecast. LSL and its Directors accept no liability to third parties in
respect of this update save as would arise under English law.
Any forward-looking statements in this update speak only at the date of this
document and LSL undertakes no obligation to update publicly or review any
forward-looking statement to reflect new information or events, circumstances
or developments after the date of this document.
Independent review report to LSL Property Services plc
Conclusion
We have been engaged by LSL Property Services plc (the 'company') to
review the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial
report for the six months ended 30 June 2025 which comprises the Interim Group
Income Statement, Interim Group Statement of Comprehensive Income, Interim
Group Balance Sheet, Interim Group Statement of Cash Flows, Interim Group
Statement of Changes in Equity and the related notes. We have read the other
information contained in the half-yearly financial report and considered
whether it contains any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies
with the information in the condensed set of financial statements.
Based on our review, nothing has come to our attention that causes us to
believe that the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly
financial report for the six months ended 30 June 2025 is not prepared, in all
material respects, in accordance with UK-adopted International Accounting
Standard (IAS) 34, 'Interim Financial Reporting' and the Disclosure Guidance
and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.
Basis for conclusion
We conducted our review in accordance with International Standard on Review
Engagements (UK) 2410, "Review of Interim Financial Information Performed by
the Independent Auditor of the Entity" issued by Financial Reporting Council
for use in the United Kingdom (ISRE (UK) 2410). A review of interim financial
information consists of making inquiries, primarily of persons responsible for
financial and accounting matters, and applying analytical and other review
procedures. A review is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in
accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) and consequently does
not enable us to obtain assurance that we would become aware of all
significant matters that might be identified in an audit. Accordingly, we do
not express an audit opinion.
As disclosed in note 1, the annual financial statements of the group are
prepared in accordance with UK-adopted international accounting standards. The
condensed set of financial statements included in this half yearly financial
report has been prepared in accordance with UK- adopted International
Accounting Standard 34, 'Interim Financial Reporting'.
Conclusions relating to going concern
Based on our review procedures, which are less extensive than those performed
in an audit as described in the Basis of conclusion section of this report,
nothing has come to our attention to suggest that management have
inappropriately adopted the going concern basis of accounting or that
management have identified material uncertainties relating to going concern
that are not appropriately disclosed.
This conclusion is based on the review procedures performed in accordance with
this ISRE (UK), however future events or conditions may cause the entity to
cease to continue as a going concern.
In our evaluation of the directors' conclusions, we considered the inherent
risks associated with the group's business model including effects arising
from macro-economic uncertainties, we assessed and challenged the
reasonableness of estimates made by the directors and the related disclosures
and analysed how those risks might affect the group's financial resources or
ability to continue operations over the going concern period.
Directors' responsibilities
The half-yearly financial report is the responsibility of, and has been
approved by, the directors. The directors are responsible for preparing the
half-yearly financial report in accordance with UK-adopted International
Accounting Standard (IAS) 34, 'Interim Financial Reporting' and the Disclosure
Guidance and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct
Authority.
In preparing the half-yearly financial report, the directors are responsible
for assessing the company's ability to continue as a going concern,
disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the
going concern basis of accounting unless the directors either intend to
liquidate the company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative
but to do so.
Auditor's responsibilities for the review of the financial information
In reviewing the half-yearly report, we are responsible for expressing to the
Company a conclusion on the condensed set of financial statements in the
half-yearly financial report.
Our conclusion, including our Conclusions relating to going concern, are based
on procedures that are less extensive than audit procedures, as described in
the Basis for conclusion paragraph of this report.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the company in accordance with ISRE (UK) 2410.
Our review work has been undertaken so that we might state to the company
those matters we are required to state to it in an independent review report
and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not
accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company, for our
review work, for this report, or for the conclusion we have formed.
Grant Thornton UK LLP
Statutory Auditor, Chartered Accountants
Leeds
16 September 2025
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