The MSN(r) HomeAdvisor(tm) service the Internet's most comprehensive resource for home buying, selling and ownership, today announced a renewed relationship with Builder Homesite Inc. (BHI), a consortium of top U.S. home builders and operator of NewHomeSource.com.

The agreement, coming at a time when new-home sales nationwide are at an all-time high, provides consumers with relevant tools and information throughout the new-home-buying process, enabling them to access BHI's listings of new homes by builder or community. Home buyers can browse thousands of new homes from leading national and regional builders, sorting by square footage, number of bedrooms, price or date available.

For its part, MSN offers targeted exposure of BHI services to 6 million users monthly on MSN HomeAdvisor and more than 300 million consumers monthly on MSN, putting homes in front of more potential buyers than any other site.

"Home builders understand the important role the Internet plays for consumers in the market for a new home or community to live in," said Tim Costello, CEO of BHI. "We continue to successfully leverage the massive consumer reach of MSN HomeAdvisor to provide a seamless new-home-buying experience to consumers searching for new homes."

In July, the Commerce Department reported that in 2001 new-home sales surged 6.7 percent for a total of 1.017 million, topping the 976,000 new-home sales projected by some economists. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) projects 920,000 new-home sales this year, up 1.2 percent from its 2001 projections. BHI's consortium of top U.S. builders sold 225,000 homes in 2001, representing more than $46 billion in gross revenue.

"Our great relationship with BHI enhances the new-home offerings of MSN HomeAdvisor and makes the home-buying process more efficient and less stressful for consumers," said Ryan Hamlin, general manager of MSN HomeAdvisor. "We are committed to working with BHI and other industry partners to convert the massive consumer reach of MSN into mutually beneficial relationships between consumers and advertisers."

MSN HomeAdvisor offers a variety of new-home-buying tools, including virtual tours, finance calculators and neighborhood information to help consumers find their ideal home. MSN HomeAdvisor has experienced a surge in traffic in recent months as a result of the record new-home sales figures and the increase in home refinancing due to lower mortgage rates. Monthly traffic has increased 38 percent over the past three months.

Consumers can explore new-home options and search for available homes and communities on HomeAdvisor.com

Published: September 18, 2002

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