REDMOND, Wash., Aug. 9, 1999 — The MSN TM HomeAdvisor TM online real estate service, the award-winning guide to finding homes and loans on the Web, today announced it has signed listing agreements with some of the nation’s largest regional brokers and multiple listing services (MLSs), including Prudential Connecticut Realty in Rocky Hill, Conn.; Realty Executives of Illinois and Northern Indiana; Frontier Real Estate/Better Homes & Gardens in Denver; Comey & Shepherd Realtors in Cincinnati; Coldwell Banker Landis and the Professionals in Wyomissing, Pa.; Napier-Old Colony Realtors in Richmond, Va.; Eastern Massachusetts Real Estate/Better Homes & Gardens in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine; RE/MAX Affiliates/Realty Associates in Virginia; Cressy and Everett/Better Homes & Gardens in South Bend, Ind.; Daniel Gale Agency in Long Island, N.Y.; and Michael Saunders & Company in Sarasota, Fla.
These new agreements increase the total nationwide listings signed by HomeAdvisor to more than 750,000, representing the fastest growth ever by an online real estate service. HomeAdvisor officially launched less than a year ago, on Aug. 12, 1998.
“HomeAdvisor is already an established leader in providing home buyers with the services and information they need,”
said John Tuccillo, nationally known real estate expert.
“Now that they’ve closed the listings gap, HomeAdvisor is clearly positioned to be the long-term real estate category leader.”
HomeAdvisor has also established relationships with Homes.com and The Real Estate Book, two of the largest real estate publications in the country. Homes.com and The Real Estate Book will provide brokers and agents with free advertising to the millions of consumers who visit HomeAdvisor and MSN each month.
“Home owners marketing their property through a Realty Executives agent expect their homes to be marketed on Internet sites that meet the criteria of the Realty Executives office,”
said Roy Fair, CEO of Realty Executives of Illinois and Northern Indiana.
“This agreement with MSN HomeAdvisor allows us to meet these Internet expectations by providing sellers with broad exposure on the Internet. We are ensuring that sellers receive the broad exposure they expect while at the same time providing a convenient place for buyers to shop for homes.”
HomeAdvisor also recently announced new listing agreements with numerous multiple listing services from throughout the country, including Athens Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service in Athens, Ga.; South Shore Association of Realtors in Braintree, Mass.; Greater Clearwater Association of Realtors in Clearwater, Fla.; Incline Village Board of Realtors in Incline Village, Nev.; East Central Illinois Area Association of Realtors in Taylorville, Ill.; Flint Area Association of Realtors in Flint, Mich.; Southeastern Massachusetts MLS in New Bedford, Mass.; Bay Area Real Estate Information Services Inc. in Santa Rosa, Calif.; California Desert Association of Realtors in Palm Desert, Calif.; Bay Ridge/Bensonhurst Multiple Listing Service Inc. in Brooklyn, N.Y.; Gainesville-Alachua County Association of Realtors in Gainesville, Fla.; Peoria Area Association of Realtors in Peoria, Ill.; Des Moines Area Association of Realtors in Des Moines, Iowa; Water Wonderland Board of Realtors in Gaylord, Mich.; Passaic County Board of Realtors in Wayne, N.J.; and Multiple Listing Service of Southwest Washington in Vancouver, Wash. These agreements are in addition to the thousands of listing agreements that HomeAdvisor has signed with MLSs and brokers since launching last summer.
“Over 50 million people are currently accessing information online, with almost half of them using MSN every month,”
said Peter G. Helie, president and CEO of Prudential Connecticut Realty.
“We are taking full advantage of this rapidly growing marketing medium by showcasing our listings on our own Web site and on the most popular independent real estate sites as well. MSN HomeAdvisor is a critical part of our Internet strategy of exposing our listings to the most buyers possible.”
About MSN HomeAdvisor
HomeAdvisor is the Internet’s most complete guide for finding homes and loans, combining Microsoft® technology with services and expertise from some of the most trusted names in the real estate industry. It empowers consumers through every step of the home-buying process and is the first Internet site to fully integrate content and services such as neighborhood, crime and school statistics with homes, loans, editorial content and expert advice. Winner of the Inman Innovator Award as the best residential real estate site, HomeAdvisor is a PC Magazine Top 100 Web site, a Yahoo! Internet Life Best of the Best winner and a Family PC Web Site of the Month. Part of the MSN network of Internet services, HomeAdvisor launched in July 1998 and is free on the World Wide Web at http://homeadvisor.MSN.com/ (connect-time charges may apply).
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
Microsoft, MSN and HomeAdvisor are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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