#1 Website for Home Buyers forms agreement with industry consortium of top US Home Builders
Austin, Texas – March 6, 2001 Builder Homesite, Inc., the emerging builder-founded consortium for the New Home Market, and MSN HomeAdvisor, Microsoft’s award-winning online home and real estate guide, have announced an agreement to establish the largest listing channel for new construction homes. Builder Homesite, a consortium created by ten of the premier U.S. homebuilders, will provide HomeAdvisor with the most comprehensive selection of new home listings and related content available in the market today.
HomeAdvisor has over 4 million unique visitors a month and is part of the MSN network of Internet services. As the Internet’s most complete guide for finding anything about the home, HomeAdvisor combines Microsoft technology with services and expertise from some of the most trusted names in the real estate and mortgage industries. Builders represented by the Builder Homesite consortium built over 146,000 homes in 2000 and represent over $29 billion dollars in gross revenue. The result of this agreement will greatly expand the selection of new home information available to consumers who visit the new home channel on HomeAdvisor. Recently named the ‘Best Home-Buying Site’ on the Web for the third consecutive quarter by Gomez Advisors, HomeAdvisor will bring nationwide exposure to new homes.
“New homes are a very exciting part of the options that consumers have when looking for a home. While further establishing HomeAdvisor as the most comprehensive home-related website, this agreement also reinforces the Builder Homesite consortium as the premier player in serving both homebuyers and the new homebuilding industry,” said Tim Costello, President and CEO of Builder Homesite.
The Builder Homesite consortium was created by 10 of the top US homebuilders to define and build a Web-based service that would focus exclusively on the needs of the new home market. The consortium continues to grow in membership as momentum in the industry builds. Member builders include: Beazer Homes USA, Inc. (NYSE: BZH), Centex Corporation (NYSE: CTX), D.R. Horton, Inc. (NYSE: DHI), David Weekley Homes, Gateway Homes, Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. (ASE: HOV), KB Homes (NYSE: KBH), Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN), M.D.C. Holdings (NYSE: MDC), Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM), The Ryland Group, Inc. (NYSE: RYL), and Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL).
“Builder Homesite, with their strong builder alliances, brings a unique set of attributes that enrich the customer’s experience on HomeAdvisor,” said Ian Morris, product unit manager for MSN HomeAdvisor. “Selecting a home is one of the most important decisions a consumer makes; with this agreement we will now offer our customers the richest, most complete selection of new homes available on the market today.”
Builder Homesite’s powerful consortium of builders provides HomeAdvisor with the most extensive new home channel anywhere on the Internet. Through the relationship with Builder Homesite the agreement provides HomeAdvisor with an unparalleled relationship with the nation’s premier homebuilders. The unique collaboration will offer the consumer an opportunity to search the most comprehensive listings with the broadest selection of new homes on the market. New home listings have special requirements, and sites that create an MLS style listing strategy for new homes cannot accurately highlight all of the features and options available with a new home.
New Home Category
Currently, the new home marketplace is estimated to be a $230 billion market in the United States. PaineWebber’s eBuilder Report states that builders effectively using the Internet could see profits per home improving by up to 30% over the next ten years. Consumer use of the Internet during the home selection process is increasing, with research studies showing that 62% of all new homebuyers already use the Web for sources of information and service. Other research has revealed that over 85% of consumers will use or plan to use the Internet to shop for homes in the next two years.
“This partnership is about the power of builder collaboration,” said Donald J. Tomnitz, Vice Chairman, CEO, and President of D.R. Horton, Inc., and Chairman of Builder Homesite. “It’s about all the hard work the builder industry has expended over the last several months to leverage our collective strength in the area of online technology. The HomeAdvisor agreement is a perfect example of what this industry can achieve together. I fully expect that this will be only the first of many such opportunities enabled by the BHI consortium.”
About Builder Homesite, Inc. and NewHomeSource.com
About Builder Homesite, Inc. and NewHomeSource.com
Founded in Austin, TX in 2000 by a consortium of 32 of the nation’s largest homebuilders, Builder Homesite, Inc. (BHI) represents over 225,000 new home sales annually. BHI’s mission is to offer improved technology and marketing solutions for the new home industry. The first product by Builder Homesite is NewHomeSource.com, a consumer website offering the most comprehensive information and selection of new homes available on the Internet. Because of the extensive distribution network, more and more builders are making BHI their entry point into the Internet. By providing data to New Home Source, builders can also participate in BHI online partner channels, including Yahoo, eBay, CitySearch, Homegain, newspaper and realtor websites.
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