NTT DATA Corporation (president and CEO: Toshiharu Aoki) today announced business tie-ups with an additional five home builders to expand the functions in the home builder portion of the HOME4U real estate portal site. The aim is to promote more cross-industry cooperation between home builders and real estate brokers, providing users of the portal site with comprehensive services from real estate transactions to house construction.

With the new participants, the number of home builders taking part in the HOME4U portal grows to seven firms. Joining Taisei Corporation and Mitsubishi Estate Home Co., Ltd. are the five companies Asahi Kasei Corporation; Nomura Home Co., Ltd.; Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd.; Sumitomo Forestry Co., Ltd.; and SXL Corporation.

The enhancements to the home builder section of HOME4U mean that users thinking of building a house will have a wider range of builders from which to choose. In addition, taking advantage of its neutral position as an IT vendor, NTT DATA will be able to promote closer cooperation between the home builders and the real estate brokers already part of the HOME4U site (Mitsubishi Real Estate Services Co., Ltd.; Nomura Real Estate Urban Net Co., Ltd.; Tokyo Tatemono Real Estate Sales Co., Ltd.; and Yuraku Real Estate Sales Co., Ltd.), offering users a cross-industry marketplace for highly transparent real estate transactions.

Background

HOME4U was started in November 2001 as a Web portal site for introducing buyers and sellers of previously owned real estate properties. Since that time it has enjoyed growing use, achieving an access rate of more than 200,000 page views (PV) per month, as well as an average of around 1,000 property appraisal requests per month by users contemplating actual transactions.

A questionnaire conducted on the site early this year showed that a large percentage of those using the appraisal request function and other services are planning a move into a different home, while those looking to purchase land are also thinking of building a new home on the property. These results demonstrated the usefulness of putting stronger emphasis on the home builders' portion of the Web site.

The increased participation by leading home builders makes it possible to realize cross-industry cooperation between home builders and real estate brokers, better serving the needs of the site users.


Specific Changes

• An enhanced home builders' section (http://www.home4u.jp/buy/index_housemaker.html)
  
  A function has been implemented that lets site users request brochures from each of the participating builders in a single operation, for easy comparison-shopping. A combined total of more than 600 brochure requests are expected to be made per month.

Coming Changes

• Additional enhancements to the home builder section
  
  The brochure-request feature is just the start. To make the site more attractive to users, original services by individual builders will be added.
  
  
• Bolstering cross-industry cooperation
  
  Cooperation between real estate firms currently a part of HOME4U and companies in other industries such as financial institutions will be strengthened further, to realize an Internet-based marketplace for conducting real estate transactions that involve each of the relevant industries.

HOME4U Services and the Advantages for Users

For first-time home buyers

• Comparative shopping among highly original, reliable home builders (introduced July 8, 2002)
  
  Users can order brochures directly from each of the participating home builders in one operation, making it easy to find the right home by comparing available choices.
  
  
• Always-fresh property information (http://www.home4u.jp/buy/)
  
  Real estate firms update their property listings daily, providing users with access to the latest information so they can find a property geared to their preferences.

For users considering a move (http://www.home4u.jp/sell/)

• A good estimate of the selling price
  
  Up to now, a customer wanting to get property appraised by more than one real estate agent has had to contact each one separately. HOME4U allows requests to be made all at once to each of the participating agencies, so the appraisals can more easily be compared and studied, giving a good idea of the selling price.
  
  
• Help in assuring a sale
  
  Under the Speedy Sale system initiated in February 2002, the participating real estate firms use their individual information networks to survey purchase prices from specialist companies, selecting the most favorable terms for customers seeking to sell property. This service helps sellers turn over their property quickly.