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Financial data and information services · United States

CoStar Group

costargroup.com ↗

CoStar runs CoStar Suite, LoopNet, and Homes.com, the main data platforms for US commercial real estate.

Defensible for now
Assessed 21 July 2026 · Evidence as of 21 July 2026
Real protection, with named pressure against it.
On the recordSince 21 July 2026 · Checkable from 2026-2027 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Motions to dismiss ruling in NDIl/EDVA antitrust class actions over broker lease-data sharing
The call

CoStar's commercial data business still runs deep, but an antitrust suit over its data-sharing arrangements and a Homes.com money pit are the two things that could actually cut into it.

CoStar collects and sells detailed information about office buildings, apartments, and retail spaces to brokers, lenders, and property companies. Its core business is hard to replace because it has spent 40 years building a network of field researchers who verify information by hand, and brokers and lenders have built their workflows around CoStar's data, so switching costs are high. However, two big problems cloud the picture: lawsuits from major broker firms like CBRE and JLL claim CoStar is illegally sharing nonpublic lease data to keep competitors out, which could undermine the whole advantage if the courts agree, and CoStar's separate push into residential real estate through Homes.com is losing hundreds of millions of dollars per year with no clear end in sight. If the antitrust cases succeed or if CoStar cannot stop the Homes.com bleeding within the next few years, the company's value could shrink sharply even if the core commercial data business stays strong.

Why
01
AI pressure: Prophia, Kira, LeaseLens (AI lease-abstraction tools). These chip away only at CoStar's Lease Analysis module; the core field-verified data and workflow lock-in still feed AI rather than lose to it. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: CBRE, JLL, Cushman & Wakefield, Colliers, Newmark (also antitrust co-defendants); Zillow in residential. Big brokers are suing over the data-sharing deals that built CoStar's lease-data edge, while Zillow keeps beating Homes.com in residential traffic. Could a giant copy it? No, they are blocked.
03
What protects it. Forty years of field-verified commercial data plus broker and lender workflows that switch at real cost.
What would change this call
Rulings on motions to dismiss in the April and June 2026 antitrust suits over broker lease-data sharing. Shows whether the core data-sharing moat mechanism survives legal challenge or faces forced disclosure remedies.
Homes.com net investment for 2026 landing at or below the guided $550 million. Shows whether management is actually cutting residential losses as promised or spend is reaccelerating.
CoStar Suite and commercial segment revenue growth rates in the next two quarterly reports. Shows whether core commercial subscription bookings are holding their pace or decelerating as Baird flagged.
Key numbers
  • FY2025 revenue $3.25B, net income only $7M (2025-12-31)
  • Homes.com revenue ~$80-100M vs over $3B invested (2026)
  • Market cap ~$12.1B, stock near $29 vs 52-wk high $97.43 (2026-07-21)
Named risks
  • Antitrust litigation from major brokerages could force data-sharing remedies that undermine core moat. Severity: high
  • Homes.com continues bleeding cash with over $2 billion cumulative losses against $80-100M annual revenue. Severity: high
  • CFO departure and executive turnover triggering analyst downgrades in July 2026. Severity: medium
  • Activist investors Third Point and D.E. Shaw could force disruptive strategic changes. Severity: medium
  • AI-native point tools eroding paid upsell modules like Lease Analysis. Severity: low
Rivals, as read in July 2026
RivalDirectionEvidence
Zillowlosing toHomes.com generates only $80-100M revenue vs $3B invested since launch, as of Feb 2026
CBRE, JLL, Cushman & Wakefield, Colliers, NewmarkcontestingSued CoStar for alleged hub-and-spoke price-fixing over lease data, April and June 2026
Prophia, Kira, LeaseLenslosing toAI-native lease abstraction tools erode CoStar's Lease Analysis module, per June 2026 industry ranking
CompStak, Reonomy, Real Capital Analyticsgaining onDescribed as niche players with no equal to CoStar's commercial data as of June 28, 2026
Questions people ask
Is CoStar Group profitable in 2026?
CoStar's FY2025 net income was just $7 million on $3.25 billion revenue with a $72 million operating loss, largely due to Homes.com losses. Q1 2026 revenue hit $897 million, up 22.5% YoY, but Homes.com remains unprofitable until at least 2029 per company guidance from April 2026.
Could AI replace CoStar Group's data business?
CoStar's core moat is a 40-year field-verified commercial real estate database built by human researchers, which is not publicly scrapeable by LLMs. AI mainly threatens narrower modules like Lease Analysis, where AI-native tools such as Prophia and LeaseLens compete, not the core database itself.
Who is CoStar Group's biggest competitor?
In commercial real estate data, CoStar has no true equal per an industry writeup dated June 28, 2026, with niche players like CompStak and Reonomy. In residential, Homes.com competes directly against Zillow, where CoStar trails badly despite over $3 billion invested.
Why did CoStar Group stock crash in 2026?
CoStar shares traded around $28.58 to $29.68 on July 21, 2026, down from a 52-week high of $97.43, a roughly 65-67% decline. Drivers include Homes.com's over $2 billion in cumulative losses, activist pressure from Third Point and D.E. Shaw, antitrust lawsuits filed in April and June 2026, and a CFO departure.
Is CoStar Group facing antitrust risk?
Yes. Two antitrust class actions, filed April 2026 in the Eastern District of Virginia and June 12, 2026 in the Northern District of Illinois, allege CoStar ran a hub-and-spoke price-fixing scheme with CBRE, JLL, Cushman & Wakefield, Colliers, and Newmark over nonpublic lease data.
Will CoStar Group shut down Homes.com?
Not confirmed as of July 2026, but activist investors Third Point and D.E. Shaw pressured the board over Homes.com's spending in February 2026. CoStar cut planned 2026 net investment to about $550 million from $850 million in 2025, pushing profitability target to exiting 2029.
Timeline
  • 2026-07-31New CFO Robin Rossmann takes office, replacing prior CFO
  • 2026-07-21Market cap about $12.1 billion, stock trading $28.58-$29.68
  • 2026-07-14Baird downgrades CoStar to Neutral, cuts price target $48 to $34 on CFO exit
  • 2026-07CoStar launches platform in France, acquires 30% stake in Italy's Wikicasa
  • 2026-06-12Antitrust class action filed in Northern District of Illinois over lease data pricing
  • 2026-04CoStar cuts Homes.com 2026 net investment plan to $550 million, pushes profitability to exiting 2029
  • 2026-04Antitrust suit filed in Eastern District of Virginia against CoStar and major brokerages
  • 2026-02-04D.E. Shaw releases open letter challenging CoStar board on Homes.com spend
  • 2026-02CoStar cuts about 200 Homes.com jobs amid activist pressure
  • 2025-05CoStar agrees to acquire Australia's Domain Group for about $1.92 billion
Head to head
CompStak vs CoStar GroupCoStar Group vs REA Group
Revision history
21 July 2026
First assessed. Defensible for now. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
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