HOUSTON ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, INC.

What HOUSTON ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, INC. does

Houston Association of REALTORS, Inc. (HAR) is a private professional trade association founded in 1918 and headquartered in Houston, Texas. It serves more than 48,000 licensed real estate professionals across the Greater Houston metropolitan area, which includes Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Brazoria, and Galveston counties. HAR operates the primary Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for the Houston market through its Matrix platform and provides the consumer-facing HAR.com property search portal, the HARConnect.com member portal, and a suite of ancillary tools including HAR CRM, Cloud CMA, SafeShowings, and FOREWARN. The association is affiliated with the National Association of REALTORS at the Diamond level and operates as TREC Provider #2 for continuing education.

HAR generates revenue through five primary streams: recurring MLS subscriptions, annual membership dues, TREC-approved professional development and pre-licensing courses, advertising and sponsorships in Houston REALTOR Magazine and on its digital properties, and event revenue from the annual HAR Engage conference and TREPAC political fundraising events. Its go-to-market is hybrid — sales-led MLS and membership acquisition layered with event-driven retention (10 area networking groups, annual conference) and community-led engagement through specialized interest groups including YPN (Young Professionals Network), HAR Global, CommGate (commercial), Management Central, and TREPAC. The technology stack is conventional SaaS built around the Matrix MLS core, with limited third-party AI integration (notably RentSpree for rental screening) and no proprietary AI/ML capability disclosed. Recent strategic emphasis has been on product diversification (HAR CRM launched February 2025, HAR Global Information Exchange in 2023), geographic deepening within the metro (Fort Bend County Video Studio in 2023, South Bay networking group in 2022), and expanded political advocacy leadership.

Name

HOUSTON ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, INC.

Legal name

Houston Association of REALTORS, Inc.

Website

https://harconnect.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1918

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Houston Association of REALTORS, Inc. is a 1918-founded private trade association serving 48,000+ real estate professionals in the Greater Houston metro, operating the regional MLS (Matrix), HAR.com consumer portal, HAR CRM, professional development, and political advocacy through TREPAC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. MLS Subscriptions: HAR operates the primary MLS for the Houston area, generating revenue through MLS subscription fees from members and subscribers.
2. Membership Dues: HAR collects annual membership dues from real estate professionals seeking access to MLS, advocacy, and professional development services.
3. Professional Development Courses: TREC-approved continuing education and pre-licensing courses for real estate professionals. TREC Provider #2 (Houston Association of REALTORS).
4. Advertising and Sponsorships: The Houston REALTOR magazine and website carry advertising from industry vendors and partners.
5. Event Revenue: HAR Engage annual conference, TREPAC events, and other association events generate sponsorship and registration revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

HAR operates the primary Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for the Greater Houston area, providing property listing data, search, and market analytics to more than 48,000 member real estate professionals. It delivers TREC-approved continuing education and pre-licensing courses, political advocacy through TREPAC, regional networking through ten area groups and interest sections (YPN, HAR Global, CommGate, Management Central), and proprietary technology tools including Matrix MLS, HAR CRM, Cloud CMA, HAR TV, and the HAR.com consumer portal.

Product overview

Houston Association of REALTORS (HAR) operates a platform-based ecosystem for real estate professionals, centered on HAR MLS (Matrix), the HAR.com consumer website, and HARConnect.com member portal. Additional offerings include HAR CRM for agent client management, HAR TV for video marketing, Cloud CMA for comparative market analysis, and various training/education programs. The association also supports professional development through YPN (Young Professionals Network), TREPAC political advocacy, HAR Global international services, CommGate commercial division, and Management Central for brokers. Safety tools like SafeShowings App and FOREWARN are available to MLS subscribers. HAR Engage hosts the annual member conference, and nine Area Networking Groups facilitate regional member engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Houston REALTOR Magazine: Official magazine publication of HAR providing industry news and updates to members
• HARConnect
• HAR TV
• HAR Engage
• YPN (Young Professionals Network)
• HAR Global
• Management Central
• CommGate
• TREPAC
• HAR.com

Products and services

• HAR MLS (Matrix) The Multiple Listing Service operated by HAR via the Matrix platform, providing property listing data, search functionality, and market analytics to real estate professionals in the Greater Houston area. It is the de facto MLS standard for Houston and serves as the core member benefit driving membership acquisition.
• HAR.com Public-facing consumer website offering property search, listing information, agent lookup, and real estate resources for home buyers and sellers in the Greater Houston area. Updated every five minutes with new listings from HAR MLS.
• HARConnect.com Member communications portal providing news, updates, professional development resources, association announcements, event registration, and member services information.
• HAR CRM A customer relationship management tool for real estate agents to manage client interactions, leads, and transactions, provided as a member benefit integrated with HAR's broader technology ecosystem.
• HAR TV Video platform producing lifestyle videos, Houston housing market updates (#MFM series), agent interviews, and educational content for agent marketing and consumer engagement. Distributed via HAR.com and YouTube at youtube.com/user/hartv.
• Cloud CMA Comparative Market Analysis tool available to MLS Platinum subscribers, allowing agents to generate professional, modern CMA reports for seller and buyer presentations.
• Professional Development Courses (TREC Provider #2) TREC-approved continuing education and pre-licensing courses for real estate professionals, delivered via live online Zoom classrooms with mobile check-in and on-demand through HAR.TheCEShop.com.
• HAR Engage Annual Conference Annual member conference featuring educational sessions, technology demonstrations, keynote presentations, and networking opportunities for HAR real estate agents and brokers.
• Houston REALTOR Magazine Official monthly publication of HAR covering market updates, industry news, member features, association updates, and advertising opportunities for industry vendors and partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• 48,000+ MLS members served
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Association of REALTORS (NAR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHAR is affiliated with NAR, the largest trade association in the US representing 1.5 million residential and commercial professionals. HAR's Global Advisory Group operates at NAR Diamond level. HAR participates in NAR legislative meetings and benefits from national advocacy efforts.
• Texas REALTORScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHAR collaborates with Texas REALTORS on legislative priorities for the Texas Legislature. Joint advocacy efforts for the 89th Texas Legislature and shared professional development resources including TREC Provider designations.
• WAV GroupminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReal estate research and consulting firm conducts consumer research panel and member surveys on behalf of HAR since 2011.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Texas REALTORS: The state-level REALTOR association in Texas that collaborates with HAR on legislative priorities for the Texas Legislature and shares TREC Provider designations. Operates as a direct peer in mission, structure, and member services, but at the state level rather than metro level.
• National Association of REALTORS: The national trade association for real estate professionals in the US, with which HAR is affiliated as a local chapter. NAR operates MLS standards, advocacy programs, and professional development at the national level that local associations like HAR implement, making it the closest strategic and structural peer to HAR.
• Greater Phoenix REALTORS: A large local REALTOR association serving the Phoenix metropolitan area with similar MLS, education, and advocacy services. Comparable in scale and structure to HAR, providing listing infrastructure and member support for Phoenix-area real estate professionals.
• California Association of REALTORS: The largest state REALTOR association in California, providing MLS support, advocacy, education, and member services similar to HAR's offerings. Comparable in scale, structure, and service portfolio to HAR, but serving California real estate professionals rather than the Houston metro.
• Miami Realtors: A large local REALTOR association serving the Miami metropolitan area, comparable in size, scope, and service offerings to HAR. Operates an MLS platform, professional development programs, and political advocacy for South Florida real estate professionals in a similar manner to HAR.
• Florida Realtors: The state REALTOR association in Florida providing MLS, advocacy, professional development, and member services to Florida real estate professionals. Comparable in mission, structure, and service breadth to HAR, with similar membership scale and revenue diversification.
• Chicago Association of REALTORS: A large local REALTOR association serving the Chicago metropolitan area, providing MLS access, education, advocacy, and networking comparable to HAR's offerings. Operates as a similar membership-based trade association supporting a major US metro real estate market.

Broad incumbents

• Realtor.com (Move, Inc.): Operated by Move, Inc. and affiliated with NAR, Realtor.com is a major consumer real estate portal that competes with HAR.com for property search visibility. Provides listing search, agent directories, and market data similar to HAR's public-facing offerings, and benefits from its NAR affiliation.
• Zillow Group: A major consumer-facing real estate portal that competes directly with HAR.com for property search traffic and consumer mindshare in the Houston market. While not a membership organization, Zillow provides overlapping listing search, agent matching, and market data functionality that competes for HAR's consumer-facing value proposition.

Others

• CoreLogic: A real estate data and analytics infrastructure provider whose property data, MLS integration solutions, and market intelligence products overlap with HAR's MLS and market reporting services. Operates as a technology and data vendor to the industry rather than a member organization, but supplies infrastructure that HAR relies on.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HARassociates
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/hartv
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/houston-association-of-realtors-inc.
• Instagraminstagram.com/harassociates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HOUSTON ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, INC.