Andrew Florance turned commercial-property records into a data platform: the CoStar story
Andrew Florance founded CoStar Group in 1987 with the idea that commercial real-estate professionals needed organised, continuously updated information rather than fragmented paper records.
The early business sent researchers into markets to collect property, tenant and transaction data and then delivered the information electronically to customers.
The early business looks very different from the company visible today. Following the milestones in order shows which decisions changed CoStar Group’s direction and which capabilities remained constant.
Commercial property data became a subscription product
CoStar built databases covering buildings, leases, sales, tenants and market conditions, selling access to brokers, owners, lenders and investors.
This shift also changed how customers consumed the technology. Instead of treating software or infrastructure as a one-off purchase, the relationship became more continuous, with updates, capacity and services delivered over time.
Geographic expansion made the dataset more valuable
As CoStar entered additional metropolitan areas, customers could compare markets through one research platform rather than assemble local sources manually.
This was an important turning point because it expanded what CoStar Group could offer or the markets it could address. The effect becomes clearer when viewed as part of the longer sequence of changes that followed.
Acquisitions created consumer and marketplace businesses
CoStar bought businesses including Apartments.com, LoopNet and other property portals, adding advertising and marketplace revenue to professional information subscriptions.
The transaction mattered because it changed the shape of CoStar Group rather than simply adding revenue. It brought additional technology, customers, geographic reach or operating capability into the group and influenced the next stage of its strategy.
Residential property became the next expansion frontier
The group moved deeper into residential real estate through Homes.com and related investments, applying its data, marketing and marketplace capabilities to a broader audience.
Marketplace businesses become stronger when buyers, sellers and supporting services reinforce one another. This step gave CoStar Group another way to deepen that network rather than relying on a single transaction type.
The research database that kept expanding into the transaction
As of 18 September 2026, coStar Group now combines subscription real-estate data with large online marketplaces serving commercial property, rentals and residential housing.
The company’s current position is therefore the result of accumulated technical and commercial choices rather than one breakthrough product. That is the context future coverage should preserve.
For TechnologyBlog.co.za, this page is intended to serve as the company-history cornerstone for future CoStar Group coverage, so product and company-news articles can link back to one factual brand background instead of repeating the full origin story.
Sources reviewed include CoStar Group corporate-history and investor materials. Official company identity cross-checked against https://www.costargroup.com.
