A Message from the Managing Director: September 2024
September 2024
It is a pleasure to provide a summary of Cedar Woods’ Financial Year 2024 (FY24); a successful period which has laid the foundation for further growth over FY25.
Over FY24 we achieved record net sales of 1,201 lots/units, up 73% on the previous financial year, and record settlements of 1,140 lots/units, up 24%. This is a significant achievement and a clear indicator of the quality of Cedar Woods’ products and projects.
We commence FY25 with presales of $559m and anticipate around 70% of this to settle within the year, with the balance to settle in FY26. This provides us with confidence in meeting our revenue targets and our earnings forecast for the short term.
Whilst softer conditions were experienced in Victoria, price growth in WA, QLD, and SA contributed to our increased revenue. We anticipate these trends to continue due to supply shortages in those markets; however, the price growth will moderate.
The Company’s balance sheet was transformed in the second half of FY24 with significant settlements, pricing improvements and the sale of an investment asset. We start FY25 with low gearing and considerable capacity to make acquisitions and progress existing projects.
Across our portfolio, significant operational achievements were made including the acquisition of a prime Subiaco development site that neighbours the Company’s successful Incontro project and the launch of the second Bloom retirement apartment product at Glenside which is selling well.
We were pleased to announce additional projects with our partner Tokyo Gas, including the Bloom Apartments and the newly acquired Subiaco project, and we lodged our planning application for the first project with QIC at Robina in South-East Queensland.
In advancing our ESG strategy, we continue to focus on initiatives to make our developments more energy efficient such as the Community Energy Sharing Network at Eglinton Village in WA. The network provides households the option to communally store and share renewable energy to power their homes via rooftop solar panels and a community battery.
Additionally, we are collaborating with the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) and other industry stakeholders to support the development of a carbon assessment tool to measure emissions created from land subdivision as we move towards improved reporting over the medium term.
We have been particularly pleased with our strong safety record this year and the results of our staff survey, which noted an 85% staff satisfaction score, an increase from 81% last year and a testament to our efforts to develop our staff and maintain our high-spirited work environment.
As we enter FY25, Cedar Woods’ is well placed to provide new housing into a chronically undersupplied market with a significant pipeline of over 10,000 lots and many shovel-ready projects.