Hemnet's Q2: The Cost of Owning the Whole Journey
The Transition Year
Hemnet reported a bruising Q2 2026, but the headline numbers conceal a deliberate strategic pivot. Net sales fell 23% to SEK 372 million and EBITDA margin compressed to 46.4% as the nationwide rollout of Sell First Pay Later (SFPL) shifted revenue recognition — 40–45% of published listings in the quarter were under the new model, and a pipeline of ~10,000 unsold listings will only convert as properties sell. CFO Anders Örnulf made the transitory nature explicit: “Q2 is the peak quarter for absorbing the financial impact of this transition.” — Anders Örnulf · 2026-07-17 The market is also cooperating: transactions rose 11% year-on-year, prices are up 6.2% for apartments, and the oversupply that had been building since 2022 is starting to reverse.
Yet the growth engine is still intact on a like-for-like basis. ARPL grew 12.4%, and the Hemnet Max package, while still low adoption, is showing gradual improvement. Underlying demand for value-added services remains strong, and the company is confident it can sustain double-digit ARPL growth into 2027–2028.
Fighting for the Pre-Market
The strategic battle is now in the pre-market — the period before a property is formally listed. Jonas Gustafsson described a market where Pre market dynamics have eroded Hemnet's share of sold properties by 7 percentage points in 2025, as agents and buyers increasingly operate outside the platform. Hemnet's answer is two-pronged: radar listing (Under-the-radar) and strategic partnerships. Under-the-radar lets partners publish early-stage listings behind login, without monetization at that stage, but with a clear upsell path as they convert to paid listings. CEO Jonas Gustafsson acknowledged the risk but insisted on the strategic logic:
The key priority is obviously to get more listings at an earlier stage.
This is a fundamentally new approach for Hemnet, which historically monetized only on-sale inventory. By sacrificing short-term revenue, Hemnet aims to solidify its network effects at the very start of the transaction lifecycle. The company is also doubling down on AI-driven products like Home Potential and conversational search, which CTO Hanna Lindqvist called “the most exciting moment” in her career. Hemisphere's ambition — strategic initiatives spanning buy-own-sell — is being accelerated through AI, with 70% of code now AI-written.
What Changed, What Matters
The most significant change is the removal of the two-day rule for SFPL, which eliminated a major source of agent friction and should improve adoption. Combined with the Under-the-radar launch and the rapid rollout of strategic partnerships (100+ signed, covering 30% of the market), Hemnet is clearly prioritizing supply over immediate monetization. This is a long-term bet masquerading as a transition year.
One area of concern is Hemnet Max penetration, which has been slower than hoped, but management attributes this to the soft market and expects improvement as conditions recover. The company also confirmed it will not reintroduce the two-day rule, citing the Swedish Competition Authority investigation and industry feedback as contributing factors — a sign that regulatory and partner dynamics now shape product strategy as much as internal economics.
For investors, the message is clear: Q2 was the trough. Anders admitted that the SFPL impact is almost entirely a timing shift, and the ~10,000 unsold listings will convert to revenue over the coming quarters. As Jonas put it in a prior call, the company is “working at an accelerated pace to announce and to deliver the next wave” — with the autumn listing peak as the immediate catalyst. Hemnet is building an ecosystem where sellers, buyers, and agents interact at every step, and it is willing to absorb short-term pain to own the entire journey.