Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Is that sound all right? Can everybody hear okay? Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the annual general meeting of the Ingenia Communities Group. My name is Jim Hazel, and I'm chairman of the group and will also chair today's meeting. It's just gone 11:30 A.M., and the nominated time for the meeting. I've been informed that we have a quorum present, and I'm pleased to declare the meeting open. I'd like to acknowledge the Gadigal people, the traditional custodians of the land on which we're hosting this AGM today, and recognize their ongoing connection to land, water, and community, and pay our respects to the elders past, present, and emerging. Before we proceed with the meeting, I have a few housekeeping points. Mobile phones silent, please. No recording devices or cameras may be used in the meeting.
In the event of emergency, just follow me. I'll be first out. On arrival, you'll be given an attendance card when you're registered. If you haven't got an attendance card, please go to the registration desk and see one of the Link representatives. We'll be able to assist. If you have a yellow voting card, you're a voting security holder, proxy holder, or corporate representative, and have chosen to vote using a paper voting card. You will also be entitled to speak at the meeting. If you have a blue card, you're a non-voting security holder. In other words, you've already voted online prior to the meeting and did not want to use the paper voting card here at the meeting. You're welcome to ask questions and make comments. However, you're not entitled to vote.
If you have a red card, you're a visitor, and you're not entitled to speak or vote at this meeting. If anyone with a yellow or blue card wishes to speak, please raise your hand, and someone will provide the microphone so we can all hear the questions. Thank you for those security holders who've also submitted questions prior to the meeting. We will address these during the course of the meeting. Voting today will be conducted by way of a poll and all items of business. In order to provide you with enough time to vote, I will shortly open the voting. Your voting cards will not be collected until the close of the meeting, whereafter a representative of Link will come around.
However, if you have to leave early, please just hand your completed voting card to one of the Link representatives at the registration desk on the way out. Where undirected proxies have been given to me as chair of the meeting, I confirm that, as set out in the notice of meeting, I will vote the undirected proxies in favor of all resolutions. I will vote all directed proxies given to me as chair of the meeting in accordance with the directions provided. Resolutions and proxy results will be displayed on the screen. If anyone would like me to read out the resolutions and proxy results, please raise your hand, and I'll do so when we get to the formal part of the meeting. I now declare voting open on all items of business. There are three components to today's meeting.
First, I'll provide you with an update on the group's recent performance and reflect briefly on the last 12 months. This will be followed by a presentation by our CEO, John Carfi. John commenced as CEO in April this year, following an extensive recruiting process, and was appointed to the board in August. He has already made a significant contribution to the business, including establishing a clear roadmap for the future, which he will present later in the meeting. We will then progress to the formal business of the meeting, where the resolutions provided in the notice of meeting will be put to security holders. We will allow time for questions and answers regarding the resolutions. Lastly, I'd like you to join the directors of management for a cup of coffee in the foyer at the conclusion of the meeting.
I would like to start by introducing you to the directors who are present here today: Shane Gannon. You might stick your hand up, Shane. Non-executive director and chair-elect. Rob Morrison, a non-executive director, deputy chairman and chairman of the Investment Committee . Sally Evans, non-executive director and chairman of the Remuneration and Nominations Committee . Sally will step down from the board at the conclusion of the AGM. Next is Lisa Scenna, non-executive director and chair-elect of the Remuneration and Nominations Committee . Pippa Downes, non-executive director and chair of the Audit, Risk and Sustainability Committee. Simon Shakesheff, non-executive director. John Carfi, our Managing Director and CEO. Also present are Charisse Nortje, our company secretary. Justin Mitchell, CFO of the group, and as well as other members of the Ingenia team. We also have representatives of the company's share registry, Link Market Services.
Yvonne Barnickel from Group's external auditor, EY, stick your hand up, Yvonne. As well as Paul Brown from HWL Ebsworth are all with us today. Before I ask John Carfi to give us an update and we move to the formal business of the meeting, I'd like to reflect briefly on the past year and the progress that has been made, both in terms of performance and strategy. This includes changes to the board management team, as foreshadowed last year. I'm pleased to report that in 2024 financial year, the company delivered strong financial performance with the results exceeding guidance. In addition, a number of changes were made as the business pivoted from a focus on asset aggregation to operating and developing as a means to improve returns and drive security holder value. Come in.
The FY24 result reflected the benefit of increased development activity and new home settlements combined with our ongoing performance from our operating assets, which continued to deliver stable, recurring income. The result was delivered against a backdrop of challenging macroeconomic, environmental, and significant internal change, as we welcomed a new Chief Executive Officer and made several refinements to our structure and team, aligned with a focus on efficiency, execution, and value creation via development. Accelerating development activity and an increase in new home settlements, which were 24% higher on FY23, were key drivers of the result. Pleasingly, the 17% increase in EBIT and underlying earnings per security of AUD 0.233 were both above guidance. The distribution payment of AUD 0.113 per security reflected our focus on allocating capital to growth and was up 2.7% on prior year. A number of changes were made to the management team over the year.
We appointed John as CEO. He has more than 35 years' experience leading large companies and extensive real estate expertise, with a strong emphasis on development. He commenced in April 2024 and has already made a significant positive impact on the business. Come in. In addition to delivering on the FY24 result, in August, he outlined a plan for Ingenia over the next five years, which has been well received by our investors. In addition, he has adjusted the cost base and executive structure and is actively implementing changes to drive returns. The board is pleased with what he has achieved to date, including a clear plan for Ingenia, which will serve as a roadmap for the future. Let me turn now to board renewal.
John joined the board in August 2024 as managing director, as we ensured we had the right mix of skills and experiences, finding the appropriate balance between continuity and change. Amanda Heyworth and Greg Hayes stepped down from the board during the year, and Sally will retire at the conclusion of this meeting. The board would like to thank Amanda, Sally, and Greg for their significant contributions over a period of material expansion and growth. All three have had a major impact on the group. Three new directors were appointed during the year, with Lisa Scenna commencing her role as a non-executive director on the 1st of May. Lisa brings to the group extensive executive experience in roles spanning property management, asset management, and funds management in Australia and the United Kingdom.
Simon Shakesheff and Shane Gannon joined the board at the end of June, both with strong backgrounds in real estate and finance through executive and board positions. At the time of his appointment, the board identified Shane as a chair-elect, so there has been a clear pathway for the transition of the chair role. You'll have the opportunity to hear from each of the nominated directors later in the meeting. Excuse me. As the outgoing chairman, I'm proud of what's been achieved since Ingenia listed as an independent entity in 2012. This has included building a significant asset base, creating a positive culture, and increasing our focus on sustainability. It's been satisfying to see Ingenia at the forefront of the development of the land-lease community business, from a niche sector to a major part of Australia's seniors' housing offering.
During the year, it was particularly pleasing to see the level and engagement of our teams as we progressed the preparation of our first Reconciliation Action Plan . Work continues on our climate data and disclosures as we prepare for regulatory change and progress our emissions reduction pathway, aiming to deliver our goal of net zero emissions, Scope 1 and 2, across our operations in 2035. We have progressed our first Green Star Communities and have created sustainable design guidelines for future development. Under the direction of John, the group finished 2024 in a strong operational position, and we now have a five-year roadmap to set expectations and steer our actions as we seek to realize greater value for our security holders, capitalizing on the portfolio, platform, and development pipeline that has been aggregated over past years.
It's my last AGM as a director and your chairman, and I'm grateful and honored to have been entrusted with this role. So I step down after 12 years, and I'm proud of what's been achieved. As one of the first large land-lease operators and developers, we build a business at its heart that seeks to enrich the lives of our residents. This remains key to our success. Our core land-lease model is simple and transparent. It provides a compelling proposition for our residents: home ownership with a weekly rent and no deferred management or expert fees, combined with the benefits of an engaged community living. In addition to building a leading land-lease portfolio, Ingenia now has a quality Holidays portfolio and meets a growing need for affordable rental accommodation.
In closing, I'd like to thank those who have contributed to the Ingenia journey during my time as chairman, and particularly the board members who have served Ingenia, leaving the business well placed to execute on a bright future. On behalf of the board, I'd also like to thank the Ingenia team for their commitment and Ingenia security holders for their ongoing support and investment. I'm confident the business is in good hands with John Carfi as CEO, supported by a renewed board to be led by Shane Gannon. I'll now hand over to John.
Thank you, Jim, and good morning, everyone. I'd like to join Jim in welcoming you to the Ingenia Communities Group annual general meeting. It's a pleasure to be presenting today as CEO of the group.
This morning, I'd like to give an overview of the FY24 results, what has been happening across the business since I started in April, and talk about our future plans. I'm very pleased to have joined the group at an exciting time in Ingenia's evolution. Ingenia is in a period of transition, with the groundwork laid for sustainable opportunity to deliver organic growth and improve returns. I'm energized by what's already been achieved and the potential to deliver enhanced returns and value for security holders. In a period of change, our FY24 results exceeded guidance as new home settlements accelerated and our residential communities and holiday parks delivered ongoing performance. FY24 revenue grew 20%, and EBIT was up 17% to AUD 125.7 million, above the high end of our guidance range. Pleasingly, we saw positive EBIT contributions across Gardens, Lifestyle Rentals, Lif estyle Developments , and Holidays.
Ingenia Holidays continued to benefit from both occupancy and rate increases. We selectively invested in organic growth through the addition of new holiday cabins to enhance earnings streams and investment value. The Lifestyle rentals business has continued to deliver strong growth, and margins have improved as the portfolio has grown, and demand and occupancy remain high. Our Ingenia Lifestyle portfolio benefited from accelerating development and is continuing to experience demand for both new and resale homes. Ingenia Rental remained high occupancy through the year and added 54 new homes. Lifestyle development saw an increase in EBIT due to the growth in volume of home settlements. We closed the year in a strong financial position with our LVR at 32.3%.
A AUD 125 million increase in our debt facility and the divestment of AUD 75 million of lower growth assets supported investment in our development pipeline, which will be a key driver to the future growth. While my first priority was delivering the FY24 result, we have also been refocusing the business and driving returns, particularly from development. The group has a AUD 2.5 billion real estate portfolio, which it owns or manages across 102 individual properties, providing a solid foundation for future growth. Our assets provide diversity by location, sector, and price point, which supports consistent recurring cash flows and underpins our returns. Importantly, the segments we operate in have attractive tailwinds. An aging population, a growing need for affordable housing, and demand for domestic travel are all expected to continue to increase our customer base and underpin demand.
The clear opportunity for Ingenia is to continue to pivot as an asset aggregator to an asset developer and operator through the accelerated execution of our development pipeline. We are well placed with a strong position in the land-lease market, an established asset base, and a large pipeline for growth. Unlocking the value inherent in our land bank is the key to driving value creation and supports our growth ambitions in the land-lease space as we extend our exposure to the highly attractive annuity-style rental stream these communities provide. We also have opportunities to better leverage our assets and platforms to improve returns via strategic partnerships to release capital from lower growth assets as and when needed to fund growth.
We have developed a one, three, and five-year plan to guide our actions as we transition towards a more efficient operating model and the delivery of improved returns through execution in development and growth in scale. The plan will see us focus on continued simplification of the business and improving development returns in line with targets. As we scale development and enhance our delivery model, we will increase our development income as a portion of earnings and allocation of capital. While we have a lot more work to do, we have already made really good progress. A new purpose and values has been launched with our teams, and a streamlined executive is in place. We've also been clear about our needs to deliver efficiency through scale. Finally, clear return targets have been established and are reflected in future remuneration plans, providing clear alignment with our security holders.
Our focus on execution and the changes made are yielding results. We exceeded FY24 guidance and are targeting further growth in FY25. Subject to no material changes in the operating environment, the group is targeting growth in EBIT of 10%-15%. On FY24, an underlying EPS of AUD 0.244-AUD 0.256 for FY25. Pleasingly, we have seen solid results year to date as we execute on our strategic priorities and continue to see demand across our residential communities and holiday parks. With a growing demand for housing, not only in our core downsizer market, but more generally, we're seeing our communities retain high occupancy and the ability to grow rents. At the end of October, our Gardens communities had an average occupancy of 97%. We continue to attract residents to this portfolio, which offers services including meals and access to our value-added programs, Activate and Ingenia Connect.
The all-age rental portfolio is experiencing consistently high occupancy, which sits at 99%. The shortage of affordable rental homes in Australia continues to provide positive tailwinds, and we are adding new homes to meet demand with a further 30 homes planned this year, generating a yield on cost of circa 14%. The tailwinds remain strong for our holiday parks, with forward bookings up 12% year on year at the end of October. We have successfully launched new accommodation to capitalize on the opportunity for intensification as a value driver and retain a mix of attractive locations and accommodation types, catering for affordable holidays through to more bespoke accommodation experiences. At the end of October, we had settled 183 homes, an increase of 68% on the same period last year, and had a further 446 deposits and contracts on hand to support future settlements.
With more certainty over new home production, we anticipate a more consistent settlement profile this year. Our business is benefiting from our geographic diversification as trading conditions differ across the three eastern seaboard states. We currently have 13 projects in market across New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, delivering settlements across a diverse range of locations, product types, and price points. We continue to manage inventory in line with demand to support settlement volume. Our portfolio is heavily weighted to Queensland, which represents 60% of our pipeline and remains the strongest market in terms of sales and settlement rates. Our New South Wales projects have maintained steady demand, and as project milestones progress, we expect the sales rates to increase.
We have limited exposure to Victoria with only two projects in market, and while we are seeing solid demand for our projects, it is generally taking incoming residents longer to settle. We have a range of major milestone events taking place in FY25, all of which will contribute to sales momentum and increased settlements as we move towards our longer-term targets of 1,600 to 2,000 lot settlements for the three years to FY26. Our new projects are also driving greater efficiencies as we create more sustainable communities. We are not just providing more efficient buildings but are creating communities that support health and well-being through spaces designed to encourage residents to be active and socialize. We have four projects now registered for Green Star Communities ratings, including Archers Run at Morisset.
With a Green Star-designed assessment received this month, we are well underway with delivery of Australia's first all-star home community. We remain committed to the continued evolution of our approach to sustainability. As we grow development activity, we have an opportunity to create more sustainable and efficient communities that will continue to own and operate, providing ongoing benefits to our residents and investors. Finally, I'd like to talk about the outlook. I'm excited about the opportunity ahead for Ingenia and am pleased with our progress to date. While there's more work to do, we are seeing the benefits from changes already made. We have exposure to sectors with ongoing demand across seniors' housing and domestic travel and accelerating growth in our land-lease business, which now represents more than 45% of the group's AUD 2.5 billion portfolio.
Our resident rental streams provide a strong defensive element to returns, and we have an unrelenting focus on execution and the delivery of improved returns, particularly in our development. Our five-year plan sets out a clear and achievable path to scale through the acceleration of our development pipeline and is supported by a robust capital plan and enviable land bank. We remain focused on the execution of that plan. Before I hand back to Jim, I'd like to thank the Ingenia team for embracing a customer-obsessed culture, their commitment to this year's targets, and their openness to change. I'd also like to express my thanks to the board and acknowledge our outgoing chairman, Jim, for his leadership and commitment to the group for the last 12 years. And finally, I'd like to thank our security holders for your feedback and strong support. I look forward to presenting next year's AGM.