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CoStar Group

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CoStar Group, Inc.
Company typePublic
Industry
Founded1987; 37 years ago (1987)
FounderAndrew Florance
HeadquartersWashington, D.C., U.S.
Area served
United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain
Key people
Andrew C. Florance (president & CEO)
Scott T. Wheeler (CFO)
Michael R. Klein (chairman)
RevenueIncrease US$2.18 billion (2022)
Increase US$369 million (2022)
Number of employees
5,653 (January 31, 2023)
Subsidiaries
Websitecostargroup.com
Footnotes / references
[1]

CoStar Group, Inc. is a Washington, DC-based provider of information, analytics, and marketing services to the commercial property industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Spain.[1] Founded in 1987 by Andrew C. Florance, the company has grown to include the online database CoStar and many online marketplaces, including Apartments.com, Homes.com, LoopNet, Lands of America, and BizBuySell.

History

CoStar Group was founded in 1987 by Andrew C. Florance in Washington, D.C.[2] It was reportedly one of the first companies that digitized and aggregated property data before the Internet was widely available.[2]

In 1998, the company became a public company via an initial public offering on the NASDAQ, raising $22.5 million.[2]

In 2004, CoStar Group, Inc. v. LoopNet, Inc. became a landmark case in copyright law about the role of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) in monitoring copyrighted content posted on its servers.[3]

In October 2009, the company acquired a building in Washington, D.C., now its headquarters, from the Mortgage Bankers Association for $41.3 million. The building sold for $79 million two years earlier, and the company claims it used its analytics data to know the right time to buy.[4]

In April 2012, CoStar Group acquired the online marketing site LoopNet for $860 million.[5][6] With the acquisition, CoStar Group also acquired Loopnet properties BizBuySell and LandsofAmerica.com.[7]

In April 2014, the company acquired Apartments.com for $585 million.[8]

In May 2016, CoStar Group's European subsidiary CoStar Europe Ltd acquired German real estate business data company Thomas Daily.[9]

In April 2015, the company acquired Apartment Finder for $170 million.[10] In July, the company acquired Belbex, an online marketplace and information provider for commercial property based in Spain.

In February 2017, the company acquired Westside Rentals.[11] In March, the company acquired Spanish lending information platform Belbex.[12]

In February 2018, the company acquired ForRent.com from Dominion Enterprises for $350 million in cash and $35 million in stock.[13] In October, the company acquired Realla.co.uk an online marketplace for commercial property based in the United Kingdom.[14] In November, the company acquired Cozy Services for $68 million.[15]

In February 2019, the company announced that Oxford Economics would provide the economic data and forecasts used in CoStar's products.[16] In June, it was announced that CoStar Group would acquire Off Campus Partners, LLC, an online marketplace for off-campus student housing.[17] In October, it was announced that CoStar Group would acquire hotel research and analytics firm STR, Inc, for $450 million.[2]

In May 2020, CoStar announced it acquired online real estate platform Ten-x, formerly Auction.com, for $190 million.[18][19] In October, CoStar Group bought Germany-based real estate data company Emporis.[20] In November, it was announced that CoStar Group acquired Homesnap, a residential mobile application provider, for $250 million in cash.[21]

In April 2021, it was announced that CoStar Group acquired Homes.com, a residential real estate website from Dominion Enterprises, for $156 million in cash.[22]

In October 2021, CoStar announced it was acquiring BureauxLocaux, a commercial property digital marketplace in France.[23]

In October 2023, it was announced CoStar Group had acquired the London-headquartered property portal, OnTheMarket for £100 million.[24]

On April 22, 2024, it was announced that CoStar Group would acquire Matterport, a 3D spatial mapping company, for a cash and stock transaction deal at approximately US$1.6 billion.[25][26]

Controversy

In February 2022, CoStar Group came under criticism when American news website Business Insider reported that over 29 current and former employees claimed to have been excessively monitored and micromanaged, including with unscheduled check-in video calls made by the company's IT department. Additional criticism included reports of employees being publicly berated and arbitrarily fired in some cases.[27][28] The company also reportedly made efforts to take down criticism of itself on various social media platforms.[27] The company denied the complaints, claiming that discontent came from the company's high expectations.[27]

In February 2024, a proposed consumer class action lawsuit was filed against CoStar, accusing the company of a price-fixing conspiracy, in which it allegedly conspired with a group of hotel operators, including Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, InterContinental Hotels, Loews, and the U.S. subsidiary of Accor, to keep room rental prices artificially high by sharing competitively sensitive information through the company's Smith Travel Research (STR) reports.[29] The allegations were based partly on information from a software engineer at STR, a subsidiary of CoStar.[29]

Business

CoStar Group provides commercial real estate information, analytics, and online marketplaces for real estate transactions. Its research services include online services and research for the rental home and hotel industry.[30]

Its subsidiaries include the following:

References

  1. ^ a b "CoStar Group Form 10-K". SEC. February 23, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Andy Florance On Buying STR, WeWork's Failed IPO And What CoStar Buys Next". Bisnow. October 2, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  3. ^ "ISP not liable for copyright violations even after review of content". Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. June 22, 2004. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  4. ^ Hagerty, James R. (February 6, 2010). "Mortgage Bankers Association Sells Headquarters at Big Loss". The Wall Street Journal.
  5. ^ Sernovitz, Daniel J. (April 30, 2012). "CoStar Group completes LoopNet deal". American City Business Journals.
  6. ^ "CoStar Completes LoopNet Acquisition". National Real Estate Investor. May 1, 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d "Blind ambition: CoStar's Andy Florance opens up about competition, sacrifice and those pesky Glassdoor rankings (Video)". Washington Business Journal. August 18, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2022.(subscription required)
  8. ^ a b O'Connell, Jonathan (March 3, 2014). "CoStar Group buys Apartments.com for $585 million". The Washington Post.
  9. ^ a b O'Connell, Jonathan (May 5, 2016). "CoStar Group buys Apartments.com for $585 million". S&P Global. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  10. ^ "CoStar makes another push into the digital apartments sphere with a $170M buy". Washington Business Journal. April 30, 2015. Retrieved March 4, 2022.(subscription required)
  11. ^ Ellingson, Annlee (February 2, 2017). "Westside Rentals finds new home at Apartments.com". LA Business First.(subscription required)
  12. ^ a b "Belbex finalises its integration with CoStar Group". Iberian. March 16, 2017. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  13. ^ Neibauer, Michael (February 20, 2018). "Growing CoStar to close its latest buy, this one for nearly $400M". American City Business Journals.
  14. ^ a b Evans, Judith (October 12, 2018). "US real estate giant CoStar buys UK commercial property portal". Financial Times.(subscription required)
  15. ^ "CoStar Group Acquires Cozy Services Ltd., with Plans to Integrate its Innovative Renter Screening and Rent Payments Solutions into Apartments.com". GlobeSt. November 9, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  16. ^ "CoStar appoints Oxford Economics as data partner for new Investor product". Property Week. August 13, 2010. Retrieved March 4, 2022.(subscription required)
  17. ^ "CoStar buys again, this time in the off-campus student housing space". Washington Business Journal. June 21, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2022.(subscription required)
  18. ^ a b "CoStar Acquires Ten-X in $190 Million Deal". Wall Street Journal. May 14, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  19. ^ "Auction.com rebrands as Ten-X, the 'future of real estate'". Housing Wire. January 11, 2016. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  20. ^ a b "CoStar plots international push with Emporis buy". The Real Deal. October 27, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2022.(subscription required)
  21. ^ a b "CoStar to Buy Homesnap for $250 Million". Wall Street Journal. November 22, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2022.(subscription required)
  22. ^ a b "CoStar Group to Acquire Homes.com for $156M". RisMedia. April 15, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  23. ^ a b "CoStar Group Acquires BureauxLocaux, a Leading Commercial Property Digital Marketplace in France". Businesswire. October 1, 2021. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  24. ^ "CoStar acquires OnTheMarket for £100m". Today's Conveyancer. 2023-10-25. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  25. ^ "Matterport, the Global Leader in 3D Digital Twins, to be Acquired by CoStar Group". Matterport. 2024-04-22. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  26. ^ "CoStar Group to Acquire Matterport, the Global Leader in Immersive 3D Digital Twins and Artificial Intelligence for the Real Estate Industry That Makes Properties Intuitive and Interactive Online". CoStar Group Investor Relations. 2024-04-22. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  27. ^ a b c Geiger, Daniel; Nicoll, Alex (22 February 2022). "Inside the mass exodus at CoStar, real estate's biggest data firm, where 29 current and former staffers say the company surveilled and humiliated them". Business Insider. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  28. ^ TRD Staff (22 February 2022). "Employee surveillance, humiliation and exodus at CoStar". The Real Deal. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  29. ^ a b Scarcella, Mike (2024-02-21). "CoStar, luxury hotels hit with US consumer price-fixing lawsuit". Reuters. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
  30. ^ "CoStar Group Inc". Bloomberg. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  31. ^ "CoStar Acquires Property and Portfolio Research". National Real Estate Investor. July 21, 2009. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
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