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The property platform has added four heavyweights of Western Australia’s real estate industry to its list of backers.
Hayden Groves, the current president of the Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA); Damian Collins, current president of the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia (REIWA); and former REIWA presidents Alan Bourke and David Airey have all signed on as strategic investors.
Mr Groves, who is also a former president of REIWA, said the industry at large stood to benefit from new entrants to the online listing field such as Homely.
“The real estate portal market has been long dominated by Domain and REA. Competition is a good thing and the arrival of Homely maintains downward price pressures for agents using portals to advertise.
“Homely has come along well supported by the industry from the get-go and brings a real point of difference. From suburb reviews to the portal’s design, Homely is refreshing and most importantly, community-focused,” Mr Groves said.
REIWA established a partnership with Homely in February 2021 that saw all members’ listings on reiwa.com.au shared across the sites.
Since that time, Homely has recorded substantial growth in the state.
In the past six months alone, the platform saw a 220 per cent increase in online listing inquiries on Western Australian properties and a 20 per cent increase in sessions overall in Western Australia, compared to the same period of the previous year.
David Webb, Homely’s head of industry, said the company valued the opportunity to work with these four veterans of Western Australia’s real estate industry.
“The fact that all four of the REIWA’s most recent presidents chose to partner with us is testament to our dedication to supporting the WA market and providing a cost-effective alternative to high vendor paid advertising – not just in WA, but Australia-wide,” Mr Webb said.
Mr Airey commented that he had chosen to back the platform because of the “enormous appetite for a fresh challenger in this arena which, as we know, is dominated by the ‘red team’”.
“Even big players like Domain haven’t been able to break their stronghold,” he said but opined that over time, Homely would continue to grow as a player in the field.
