The land lease operator will see out the year on a high with 280 to 285 new home settlements for this FY, up 10% on previous guidance and 32% on the prior year.
They also have 160 deposits and contracts in place, up 19% on the previous year, and remain on track to deliver 350-plus settlements in FY19, an increase of 25% on FY18.
EBIT is now predicted to be about $48.5 million, above the previous guidance of $45 to $47 million.
Ingenia’s bottom line has also been given a boost with an additional $24.5 million in non-core asset sales on top of the $35 million already sold.
These include the sale of Settlers Cessnock, one of its two remaining Deferred Management Fee (DMF) communities for $2.5 million and its Rouse Hill community for $22 million.
The figures mark a record year for Ingenia, which now has 2,840 development sites on its balance sheet or under option and 10 communities in development in addition to its 59 existing communities.
Their expansion and greenfields projects are also typically offering higher sales rates and margins.
Ingenia’s chief executive Simon Owen told the SMH their homes are generating a 15-20% premium for the vendors when sold.
“These are now high-quality communities and we cannot seem to build them quick enough to keep up with the demand,” he said.
A recent investor presentation spells out their launch strategy: “build pent-up demand; insulate the market from competitors; and leverage word-of-mouth to create a sense of urgency and fear of missing out which mobilises the market to take action.”
Example, in November 2017, 80% of the homes released at their Latitude One community sold within 48 hours – a sign that the ‘FOMO’ approach is working.
