- Home and Rentals portal will roll out upgraded tools in the coming months.
- The Austin Board of Realtors view inclusion with HAR.com as a way to expand members' resources.
- Existing homes sales activity is up in Austin, while prices have risen 14 percent year-over-year.
Following a recent agreement with the Austin Board of Realtors, HAR.com‘s ‘Home and Rentals’ portal now features roughly 92 percent of all Texas real estate listings.
The portal, which has been in expansion mode since launching in early 2015, now provides homebuyers and sellers access to more than 145,000 active listings for sale or lease, which are spread between 35 markets. Statewide property records can also be accessed, an estimated 8.2 million.
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The Austin Board of Realtors (ABR) decided to share listings data with HAR.com because the move represented an opportunity to further expand member resources.
“Central Texas agents now have expanded statewide exposure, and homebuyers and sellers across Texas can connect with realtors who know the Austin-area market inside and out,” said Aaron Farmer, 2016 president of ABR.
According to Bob Hale, CEO of the Houston Association of Realtors, the Home and Rentals portal is also expanding via the inclusion of new tools.
In the coming months HAR.com plans to roll out a new virtual office website for agents to use with registered consumers along with an agent/broker-branded app. The later would be initially free to use by agents; however, Hale added at some point there will be a modest fee associated with usage.
HAR.com entered 2016 having just upgraded its portal to feature a new Apple TV application and fresh tools, which allow a consumer to more easily link to their agent and send listings, scheduling requests, feedback and interests.
The Apple app allows consumers to share viewed listings with their family at home on their television.
Austin real estate growth continues
The decision by ABR to share its listing with HAR.com comes at a time when Austin is growing and viewed as a top city nationally for real estate agents.
Sales activity in the market is up despite strong year-over-year rises in median price. In February, 572 existing sales occurred, which equated to a six percent year-over-year rise. Additionally, pending sales activity was up 12 percent during the month.
At the same time the city’s median home price rose to nearly $335,000 in February, which equated to 14 percent year-over-year appreciation.
One market condition driving pricing is inventory. Entering March, the city had an existing home supply of only 1.6 months.
