Property portal Rightmove has upgraded its earnings guidance for the year after reporting solid revenue and profit growth, with AI tools boosting amid a slowdown in the UK housing market.

The company, based out of Milton Keynes, now expects underlying earnings per share to increase by at least 7% in 2026, ahead of previous guidance for growth of at least 5%. Revenue is forecast to rise by 6% to 7%, while underlying operating profit is expected to grow by at least 3%.

The upgraded outlook comes against a more challenging backdrop for the housing market. Higher mortgage rates and weaker consumer confidence have dented activity, with buyer demand falling 10% year-on-year in the four months to 31 October. Sales agreed were down 9%, while average asking prices slipped 0.3% from a year earlier.

Affordability pressures have continued to build, with the average five-year fixed mortgage rate rising to 5.5% at the end of October from 5% in June. Expectations that the Bank of England (BoE) could tighten monetary policy further have also weighed on buyer sentiment.

The rental market remained comparatively robust, with demand continuing to outstrip supply. Enquiries per available property increased during the period, while rents rose 2.9% year-on-year.

Against that backdrop, Rightmove said investment in new products and AI-powered features was helping to deepen user engagement. Its Ask Rightmove conversational AI service has encouraged users to spend more than twice as long on the platform and generate more than three times as many leads as those who do not use the tool.

Johan Svanstrom, CEO of Rightmove, said: "We are on track to deliver revenue and profit growth within our previous full-year guidance, and are upgrading our earnings per share guidance. Our core membership remains stable with strong partner retention levels. We continue to deliver value through all market cycles to our partners. This business resilience and the debt facility we announced at the time of our interim results have allowed us to increase shareholder distributions significantly.

Svanstrom added: "This has been a quarter of strong strategic progress, in which we delivered innovation at our fastest-ever pace, compounding on top of our trusted brand and powerful data. After a meaningful step up in capability, we have a well-invested, AI-ready platform. It's equally exciting to see the strong interest and fast roll-out of our Rightmove IQ AI-powered solutions for partners. There is a long runway of innovation and value creation ahead."

Shares were down slightly 0.7% in afternoon trading Friday at around 547p.

Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, said: “The property market may be struggling but Rightmove’s latest update was relatively robust. The property listings site is seeing steady demand from estate agents but housebuilders, an increasing source of revenue in recent years, are spending less.”

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