Attend an Open House without Leaving Your Couch

Realtor.com is the first home search site to connect consumers with Livestream Open Houses

SANTA CLARA, Calif., April 17, 2020 -- Realtor.com today announced the availability of Livestream Open Houses, enabling home shoppers to virtually attend live open houses from the comfort of their own home. As COVID-19 continues to limit social interactions and group gatherings including open houses, realtor.com is working closely with MLSs to enable listing agents to show homes safely while practicing social distancing.

Just like traditional open houses, Livestream Open Houses allow listing agents to show home shoppers around the property in real time. Open house attendees will be able to drop in at any time during the open house to hear about the listing and have a look around. Unlike virtual tours, these events are scheduled in advance and broadcasted live so consumers can interact with the agent, ask questions and request to see specific home features up close.

"While virtual tours are a great resource for consumers, most home shoppers still want the opportunity to walk through a home with an agent and ask questions in real time," said Ryan Green, vice president, product management, realtor.com®. "Especially during this time of social distancing, realtor.com®'s Livestream Open Houses will give agents the opportunity to showcase their properties, and will allow consumers the ability to still explore a home through a live online experience from the safety of their own homes."

A recent consumer survey from realtor.com® and Toluna Insights found that with access to accurate listing data, detailed photos, virtual and live video tours, 24 percent of people (and 29 percent of 18-34 year-olds) would be willing to buy a home without seeing it in person. Further, 21 percent of people agree that COVID-19 has made them more likely to move into a home without stepping foot in it first.

At launch, Livestream Open Houses will support a number of video platforms including Google Hangouts, Zoom, join.me and Zoho, with additional platforms to be added over time. Real estate agents can choose which video platform works best for their needs.

Livestream Open Houses are now available on realtor.com®'s web and mobile web experiences in available geographic areas. Home shoppers can select the time that works best for their schedule and join via the Open House section of a for sale property listing or by searching for properties with upcoming open houses.

Realtor.com® is dedicated to supporting the community and helping to ease the home transaction process as much as possible during COVID-19. To learn more, visit: https://www.realtor.com/covid-19/

About realtor.com®

Realtor.com® makes buying, selling and living in homes easier and more rewarding for everyone. Realtor.com® pioneered the world of digital real estate 20 years ago, and today through its website and mobile apps is a trusted source for the information, tools and professional expertise that help people move confidently through every step of their home journey. Using proprietary data science and machine learning technology, realtor.com® pairs buyers and sellers with local agents in their market, helping take the guesswork out of buying and selling a home. For professionals, realtor.com® is a trusted provider of consumer connections and branding solutions that help them succeed in today's on-demand world. Realtor.com® is operated by News Corp [Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc. under a perpetual license from the National Association of REALTORS®. For more information, visit realtor.com.