Howard Hanna has launched a private listing network, aptly named HannaList.
HannaList, powered by software firm Ocusell, will enable Howard Hanna listing agents and their clients to share listings with Howard Hanna buyer agents before wider distribution through the multiple listing service (MLS) system. The firm said in a statement that HannaList gives agents valuable real-time buyer insights about their listings, which can help them “evaluate timing, positioning and demand” before reaching the wider market.
“This is about strategy and consumer choice,” Howard Hanna Real Estate Services CEO Hoby Hanna said in the statement Wednesday. “Sellers deserve more flexibility in how their homes enter the market. HannaList gives them the ability to understand buyer demand, refine positioning, and build momentum before the listing is broadly distributed across the market.”
The firm said HannaList was created in collaboration with regional partners, including MLS Now and West Penn Multi-List.
MLS Now president and CEO Garry Marsoubian said HannaList aligns with current regulations, specifically the National Association of Realtors’ Clear Cooperation Policy, which requires that listings be entered into the MLS within one business day of public marketing. However, there are exemptions to the policy that enable homesellers to stop (i.e., office exclusives) or delay (i.e., Delayed Marketing Exempt Listings) the distribution of their listing to a wider audience.
“MLS Now values innovation that works within established MLS policy and supports transparency for consumers,” Marsoubian said in a written statement. “Howard Hanna’s approach shows how brokerages can introduce new strategies while continuing to operate within Clear Cooperation and the broader MLS framework.”
HannaList will be available in Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania starting in April, and will be rolled out to additional markets throughout 2026. Howard Hanna currently operates in 15 states, with its home base in Pittsburgh.
“This isn’t about limiting exposure,” Hanna said. “It’s about launching with strategy. We build momentum first and then amplify broadly.”
This isn’t Howard Hanna’s first foray into exclusive listings; the brokerage partnered with California proptech leader RealScout to launch Find It First in 2019.
The platform enabled homebuyers to search Howard Hanna listings before they’re added to the MLS and distributed to larger portals. In a previous Inman article, Hanna called Find It First a “true success” for agents and consumers. Find It First has been temporarily shut down for an update, a Howard Hanna spokesperson said, adding that the platform will relaunch in early April.
HannaList’s launch comes amid continued debates over consumer choice, the ownership and distribution of listing data, and market transparency in an industry still trying to find its footing in an ever-volatile environment.
Those debates have only intensified in recent months, particularly as Compass completed its acquisition of Anywhere, giving the seven brands under the former holding company the option to adopt Compass’ technology — and marketing ethos.
Hoby Hanna has often been on the same side of the debate as Compass, issuing a striking letter to NAR last year outlining why his company would no longer follow Clear Cooperation “as a matter of course.”
In his latest Inman Interview, which took place in January, Hoby Hanna discussed Compass’ moves and offered what now seems to be a clue about HannaList.
“From a broker’s perspective… if you’re big enough and you can really organize your data, that is going to be the game changer over the next three to five years. A lot of brokerage firms have done nothing with their data. It’s sort of stagnant,” he said. “…We’re working on that right now with a lot of partners strategically on how we can distribute data, whether it be the listings to sort of create a more efficient marketplace to sell the house for the consumer in a faster fashion to buyers who are already approved, who are already looking in the market, and they’re ready to pull the trigger today.”
“So shortening days on market, creating an impact, and getting a greater price.”
