Hemnet Q1 2026: Operating Profit Down 51% as Deferred Revenue Restructure Takes Shape

Sweden's dominant property portal Hemnet opened 2026 with a sharp drop in headline numbers in the first three months of the year. The market responded poorly to Hemnet's latest numbers, share prices dropping nearly ten per cent from SEK 115 to SEK 104 before recovering to SEK 118.6 today.

Highlights include:

• Net sales were SEK 247.2M (USD 26.7M), down 24.7% year-on-year
• EBITDA was SEK 89.3m (USD 9.6M), down 43.3%
• EBITDA Margin was 36.1%
• Operating profit was SEK 65.4m (USD 7M), down 51.6%
• Paid listings were 25,400 for the quarter, down 38.3%.
• Published listings were 28,600 for the quarter, down 30.6%
• ARPL was SEK 9,109, up 12.2% as Hemnet introduces new reporting  standards

Jonas Gustafsson, CEO at Hemnet, said:

"Despite the headwinds of a continued hesitant market, Hemnet demonstrated strength during the first quarter of 2026. Average revenue per paid listing (ARPL) increased by 12% year- on-year to 9,109 SEK. ARPL growth was primarily driven by a strong conversion toward our value-added services, further accelerated by the successful launch of the new ‘Sell first, pay later’ model. In particular, we continue to see a steady increase in the share of property sellers choosing Hemnet Premium.

"The quarter’s financial results were impacted by the transition following the launch of ‘Sell first, pay later’. This model introduces an accounting effect where revenue for listings utilising the ‘Sell first, pay later’ option is recognised upon a sale rather than at the time of publication. Consequently, this represents a timing shift of revenue to subsequent quarters rather than a reduction in revenue."

The new Sell First, Pay Later (SFPL) effect will paint a better picture of the health of Hemnet's business model further down the line. 3,200 listings were published through the SFPL channel between January and March but generated no revenue, because the underlying properties had not yet been sold.

Gustafsson said the strategic shift is a deliberate trade-off rather than a setback, with the deferred revenue expected to land in subsequent quarters.

"The rollout of 'Sell first, pay later' available nationwide since March 30, marks our most significant product improvement to date and a strategic response to a shifting market. While the new model's revenue recognition timing makes year-on-year comparisons challenging, the broader effect is very positive."

In regions where SFPL was introduced during February and March, Hemnet said new listings outperformed the rest of Sweden by 15 percentage points year-on-year. Gustafsson added that the first week of April "saw a surge in volumes of newly published listings, marking the highest weekly increase recorded in ten years."

With SFPL now live nationwide, Gustafsson said the second half of 2026 "could finally be the turning point the market has long anticipated."

For now, the headline numbers will be slightly misleading until the deferred SFPL revenue catches up. Nevertheless, ARPL momentum and a decent listings recovery in early April suggest Hemnet's bet on reshaping its model around deferred payment may come good by the end of the year.

Despite major drop-offs in net sales and EBITDA, ARPL continues to improve—up 12.2% year-on-year—reflecting continued strong uptake of Hemnet's value-added services, particularly Hemnet Premium, alongside selective price adjustments.

It's worth noting that ARPL was adjusted to reflect paid listings only from January 2026 onwards, so despite a hard drop off compared to previous quarters, Hemnet's ARPL continues to grow.

The B2B segment held steady at SEK 49.5m, broadly flat against the prior year's SEK 49.6m, with new construction revenue up 10% on continued product development. Hemnet's brand-owner partnerships now span 86 agreements, with Courtier Group, MOHV and Property & Partners among the most recent additions.

Cash flow and the balance sheet remain comfortable despite significant decreases in operating cash flow (down 45.4% year-on-year), and net debt rose to SEK 612.6m, equivalent to 0.9x rolling twelve-month EBITDA; however, this is well within the company's target (below 2x).

Hemnet executed SEK 155.1m of share buy-backs during the quarter, and headcount rose to 179 from 167 at the end of 2025. Meanwhile, Sabina Klint has been appointed as Chief People and Culture Officer, commencing this June.

Jonas Gustafsson spoke to investors about SFPL and other company initiatives in Hemnet's earnings call. The audio from the presentation is available here. One key takeaway suggested that between 35%-45% of total seller listings are opting for SFPL in the regions where it was previously rolled out.

Meanwhile, Hemnet Max—the portal's top-tier advertising product—achieved increased adoption in Q1 but remains a low uptake product given its novelty (it was only introduced in April 2025). However, Hemnet said it is confident that the relative pricing differences plus feature availability provide a meaningful value proposition for agents, and adoption is expected to rise.

The company has also leaned harder into AI, launching a Hemnet app inside ChatGPT, a conversational search feature, and a virtual restyling tool that lets users visualise different interior styles within listing photography.

Hemnet added that internal AI usage is focused on higher production rather than operational efficiency. However, the company said uptake in AI usage internally jumped from around 20% in Q4 2025 to Q1 2026 as it doubles down on productivity.