A tough first quarter for top Canadian brokerage company 

Bridgemarq Real Estate Services, Canada's largest brokerage enterprise, reported a net loss of $4.7 million in Q1 — the same amount it reported as net earnings at this time last year.

One bright spot was agent count, which grew 2.6% year over year to 20,619. 

"Despite a softening in the Canadian real estate market, industry professionals continue to choose our highly respected brands, a testament to the value they provide," Bridgemarq President and CEO Phil Soper said in a statement Thursday. 

The Bridgemarq board of directors also approved a dividend to shareholders of $0.1125 per share, payable June 30 to those who are shareholders of record on May 31.

Key numbers

Revenue: $12 million vs. $13.4 million in Q1 of last year. That figure was up from the previous quarter's revenue of $10.4 million.

Net loss/earnings: A net loss of $4.7 million ($0.20 per share) in Q1, vs. net earnings of $4.7 million ($0.50 per share) the prior year. This was primarily due to a $6 million loss from the valuation of "exchangeable units" vs. a gain of $1.3 million the year before. Exchangeable units are assets that can be traded for shares of stock, and the change in value is directly related to changes in market price of shares.

Distributable cash flow: $4.8 million vs. $5.8 million year over year. The annual drop was attributed to lower revenues and higher administration costs, balanced somewhat by lower management fees and income tax expenses. But it was an improvement over Q4 of 2022, when cash flow was $3.8 million.

What Bridgemarq had to say

Soper credited Bridgemarq's strength as a company for its "stability" in agent count despite challenging circumstances.

"Our sustained investment in, and emphasis on, delivering industry-leading technology platforms, best-in-class training and an unwavering commitment to client services continues to attract top talent," Soper said in a statement.

Sales volume dropped to 35% in Q1 — an improvement over the 38% drop in Q4 2022, Bridgemarq reported. For Canada as a whole, total units sold in Q1 dropped by 37% year over year, but improved 8% vs. Q4 of 2022, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.

Bridgemarq also said that agents in its company network participated in about 28% of all home resales in Canada in 2022.