Countrywide has posted a 25% dive in year-on-year pretax profit for the first half amid Brexit uncertainty.
In its results for the six months ended June 2016, profits fell to £22m from £29m in the same period last year, while total income rose to £370m from £338m.
The company warned that full-year earnings would fall below last year’s figure and noted a slowdown in retail and residential business in London and the South East in the weeks since the referendum result.
Chief executive Alison Platt said: “The rest of the country has fared somewhat better and our lettings business and mortgage trends have been largely unaffected. There has also been a slowdown in commercial transactions, but our consultancy revenues have remained stable.
“This period of uncertainty will affect the level of transactional activity in the second half of the year and, although it is too early to quantify accurately, we will not meet last year’s result at the EBITDA level.”
The number of properties managed by the business increased from 74,100 in June 2015 to 84,500 in June 2016, while the number of new homes exchanged increased by 17%.
The company said it planned to slow its mergers and acquisitions activity and “place more focus on organic growth”.
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