REA Group seeks to buy Hometrack Australia
REA Group Limited has announced that realestate.com.au Pty Ltd has entered into an agreement to buy Hometrack Australia Pty Ltd.
The deal, subject to approval by the ACCC, is believed to be around $130 million.
Hometrack Australia is a residential property data company and a subsidiary of Hometrack Data Systems, which is owned by the UK listed ZPG Plc (Zoopla Property Group Plc).
It was only 15 months ago ZPG bought the research analysis business. They spent £120 million ($218 million).
Hometrack provides instant valuations of properties online without the need for a valuer to asses or visit the property.
The Hometrack Australia management team will continue to be led by CEO Brendan Darcy.
Hometrack Australia is forecast to deliver revenue between $13 million to $15 million and EBITDA between $6 million to $7 million for their financial year ended 30 September 2018.
There would also be cost synergies realised in the REA business once the Hometrack business is fully integrated into REA’s platforms.
REA Group CEO Tracey Fellows it represented a natural extension for realestate.com.au.
"The acquisition allows us to deliver more property data and insights to our customers and consumers.”