Owners.com Unveils Powerful New Site for Home Sellers and Home Buyers

Business Wire, Jan 21, 1999

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 21, 1999--

The Leading Real Estate Service Re-Launches With an Unprecedented

Array of Tools for Home Sellers and Home Buyers Including

Personalization, Expanded Transaction Tools, and More

Owners.com (www.owners.com), formerly Abele Owners' Network, America's largest national listing and information service of homes for sale by-owner (FSBO), announced today that it has launched a completely re-designed and expanded version of its online real estate service.

The re-launch incorporates an entirely new interactive flowchart of the real estate transaction, new mortgage/buyer tools, and personalization designed for consumers working alone or with a Realtor(c). For those selling their homes by owner, Owners.com is a powerful marketing and information resource.

"Based on extensive customer research, and the input of our industry-leading corporate partners, we have brought together a suite of unprecedented home selling and home buying tools to one Internet address -- Owners.com," said Hans Koch, co-founder and CEO. "Our site can now serve as a command center for any buyer or seller, whether they are going 'FSBO' or using a real estate broker."

The new site uses personalization to allow buyers and sellers to customize and save valuable tools and information, communicate with one another, and manage every step in the process. Tools such as a new Seller Net Calculator, developed in conjunction with First American Title allow a seller to accurately calculate the net proceeds, after closing costs, of their home sale. Online auctions, offered in partnership with CityAuction, enable home owners to efficiently sell their household possessions and find furnishings for their next residence. Whether it's antiques, stereo systems, or ski equipment, home owners can reach thousands of buyers and sellers, locally and nationally.

"Owners.com is clearly innovating the real estate industry by using the power of the Internet to allow consumers to take control of selling or buying a home, saving thousands of dollars in the process," said Andy Rebele, CityAuction's Founder. "CityAuction is excited to partner with Owners.com. Our local, online auction capabilities are a great complement to Owners.com's home marketing and transaction services."

The new site also features a completely new Loan Center, Closing Services Center, and Personal Finance Center. For buyers, the new Loan Center has been expanded to include industry leading mortgage partners, Countrywide Home Loans, LoanWorks, E-LOAN, and HomeShark, giving access to the widest array of lending options on the Internet. Other new content partners include: First American Title Insurance Company, InsWeb, iCreditReport.com, American Home Shield, Vista E/Risk, Resicom and many more.

"Today, consumers have many options for selling their home. Owners.com provides an excellent channel for the consumer who is comfortable with the complexities of buying and selling property. Countrywide's participation with Owners.com greatly enhances the delivery of Countrywide products and services to consumers who sell their own homes," said Cameron King, Executive Vice President of Countrywide Home Loans.

"A quick look at history shows that Owners.com is a company that understands how to empower a for sale by owner Real Estate transaction. We have great confidence that Owners.com will offer FSBO customers what they have wanted all along, an easy and powerful way to sell or purchase a home," said Keith Smith, LoanWorks Vice President, Electronic Commerce. "The fact that Owners.com has partnered with key national lenders like LoanWorks is also a testament to their commitment to this new medium. What we have is the best of the best in on-line real estate, teaming with the best of the best home lenders. This team has combined to build a consumer oriented Real Estate site like none other."

Homeowners can post their property for sale on Owners.com 24 hours a day, commission-free. Listings include maps, details, color photographs, buyer pre-qualification tools and more. Customized yard signs and other home-selling resources are also available for purchase at Owners.com. Homeowners without Internet access may call toll free at 800/273-7322 and request that a listing form and information packet be sent to them.

About Owners.com:

Owners.com (formerly Abele Owners' Network) was introduced in May 1996 as the first national "by owner" real estate service. Since its launch, Owners.com has marketed more than 200,000 residential properties in all 50 states on its online service. Among the Owners.com's awards, the site was named "the best for-sale-by-owner network" by The Wall Street Journal, featured as one of PC Magazine's "Top 100 Web Sites" (8/97, 11/97, 3/98), and recognized as a Snap.com Editor's Choice Site.

Owners.com has developed partnerships with companies such as American Home Shield, City Auction, Countrywide Home Loans (NYSE:CCR), E-LOAN, Vista E/Risk, First American Title (NYSE:FAF), HomeShark, InsWeb, Loanworks (a service of IndyMac Mortgage Holdings, NYSE:NDE), iCreditReport.com, National School Reporting Service, and Yahoo! (Nasdaq:YHOO) to offer powerful transaction and marketing support for homeowners selling their homes by owner.