Member Benefits

This is HAR’s state-of-the-art, Web-based MLS system created specifically to meet your needs. This tool enables to access more than 42,000 properties online, archived information on the thousands of properties sold in the past six years and the current public records information for Harris and surrounding counties.

The HAR web site is drawing an ever-increasing audience of Houston homebuyers. Consumers are generating an average more than 51 million page-views per month on the site to find information about you and your listings. Daily visitor sessions average 43,000 with potential homebuyers spending an average of 23 minutes reviewing your listings and personal REALTOR® web sites.

To promote our site, we have incorporated billboards, ads in the Houston Chronicle, regular press releases and guest columns into our marketing plan. All Realtor listings are also advertised to the public at no cost to members on a growing number of licensee sites. Click here to view list.

The public relations and promotional resources of HAR are impressive. Several times each month, HAR publishes articles, press releases and holds photo opportunities for its volunteer leadership. This PR effort has the sole focus of making consumers aware of the value that Realtors bring to a transaction. The association Web sites at HAR.com and Commercialgateway.com are a principal venue for this promotion. These Web sites afford us a unique opportunity to showcase Realtors in conjunction with their listings.

Every single legislative session, lawmakers propose a tax on your hard-earned commissions. In other states, such policies have been passed, and real estate professionals forfeit a significant amount of their income to Uncle Sam. HAR represents you with a strong, powerful political voice at the local, state and national level and has consistently defeated such onerous proposals as a tax on commissions. To see HAR's latest governmental affairs projects, click here.

The HAR Communications Department helps keep you informed about all the latest Association and industry news through a variety of products. Every week, members receive the Five Minute REALTOR® e-newsletter, which consists of more time-sensitive or late-breaking material. Each month, the department produces both online and print versions of HAR's Houston REALTOR® magazine, containing articles and advice to assist REALTORS® with their business. The department also produces a PowerPoint presentation distributed each Monday called The Edge, with constantly changing content that sales managers and brokers may incorporate in their weekly sales meetings. Additionally, HAR engages in an extensive, award-winning public relations, marketing and advertising campaign to educate consumers about the value that using the services of a REALTOR® brings to the transaction. The HAR Communications Department is also the go-to source for local, regional and national media regarding all matters real estate.

HAR provides ample opportunities for its members to come together and learn, meet contemporaries with similar business interests and reconnect with long time friends. Three of HAR's special events include Commercial Expo, REALTOR Expo and REALTOR Celebration. Commercial Expo is in April and allows real estate professionals in the commercial industry a chance to learn about the latest Houston area developments as well as network. REALTOR Expo is in the fall and includes early afternoon educational sessions, tradeshow action from 4pm until 8pm, prizes and fun! REALTOR Celebration is a celebration about the HAR member, providing a chance to congratulate the incoming leadership of HAR, honor two industry award recipients and enjoy a jovial holiday reception as well as a seated luncheon. A nationally known keynote speaker is the focus during the meal.

One of Commercial Gateway’s most prominent features is the Commercial Information Exchange (CIE) that is available online at www.commercialgateway.com. This facility makes participating firms more profitable by providing a shared information infrastructure that eliminates the wasteful duplication of effort between member firms. The CIE also identifies and promotes a set of “Best Practices” in the marketing of properties and has greatly reduced the wasteful and inefficient practice of broadcast faxes and spam e-mails. The CIE also is an excellent way for commercial brokers to monitor market conditions. Also, HAR will soon make a greater investment in research by hiring another research assistant and plans to include aerial photographic images on CommericalGateway.com soon.