About Us

Founded in 2003, the Institute of Housing Technologies is a real estate training and communications company based on the subjects of residential square footage and the real estate information network. With a quest to make “Big Data- Better Data.”, the IHT’s training and communications provide professionals with the resources to be constructive square footage ambassadors in an ever-changing business world, where consumer protection is an even greater priority. The Institute of Housing Technologies (IHT) is the only company devoted solely to the study and improvement of residential square footage education and communication, and the study of the information utilized in MLS systems and automated valuation services throughout the real estate industry. The real estate, appraisal, assessment, insurance, and mortgage industries are all dependent on the reliability of real property information, yet there have been few formal studies or talks concerning the issue of residential square footage since the Square Footage Method for Calculating ANSI® Z765-2013 was first released in 1996 and most recently updated in 2021. In fact, no national real estate or appraisal organization has ever formally developed or released any mandates concerning the measurement and/or reporting (communication) of residential square footage. The UAD appraisal dataset focuses on the standardization of real property information, yet the one number that serves as the foundation for all residential comparisons and valuations, square footage, remains without national standardization. The Institute hopes to bring about further discussions within the real estate, appraisal, mortgage, insurance, and public records systems on this important topic, and to help promote educational opportunities on all real estate information systems.

The Institute of Housing Technologies was originally founded with the objective of helping to establish one nationally approved (and mandated) residential measurement standard, or one “language of real estate.” Not only did the IHT recognize the problem, they also created a solution to the problem with their URSFR Reporting Form. For use by agents and appraisers for the professional reporting of square footage. And also, to create a mandatory education classes for every Realtor® and appraiser. Through collaborative action and in cooperation with real estate organizations and professionals throughout the industry, the Institute has grown into a research and study association; gathering statistics on the accuracy of public records, assessors and the mass appraisal process, MLS systems, automated valuation models (AVMs), new construction and the pre-licensing of agents and appraisers. Our goals have dramatically expanded as we continue to explore the role of square footage in the real estate valuation and comparison processes. Like it or not, we live in a price-per-square-foot world. This subject needs to be taught in much more detail to those who handle people’s largest financial transactions. In our opinions, this subject needs to be greatly expanded and mandated for every real estate professional.

A program created specifically for those real estate professionals who understand the need for precise square footage measurements, and those professionals who choose to follow a formal, written, defensible “standard of practice” A standard that allows them to hold a document and say “this is how I calculated the square footage,” (which another professional could follow and recreate a similar total). Such a standard helps to protect real estate professionals and their clients, as well as the general public. These classes are the most advanced courses ever offered on this often controversial subject. Information for today’s real estate professional. The “learn more, earn more” philosophy is alive and well in these advanced study programs. We are working to improve communications between all users and consumers of residential square footage data.

The Institute of Housing Technologies offers the HMS® Certification, showing you how to better understand the power of price-per-square-foot on the home comparison and valuation processes. Students will learn the rules of the ANSI® measurement standard and clear up many of the misconceptions about home measurements and square footage across the country today. Explore the secrets of the entire real estate information network, and the power MLS and public records have over the national home market. Learn to take advantage of the new generation of HGTV® educated buyers and sellers, who all understand the power of size in every residential transaction. Strategies to provide square footage with less liability, offer consumers more reliability in home pricing, and run your business more efficiently and profitably. The HMS® program is sponsored by the Institute of Housing Technologies, a leader in real estate research and education. This Certification program is brought to you exclusively through the  Institute of Housing Technologies, LLC. After considering collaborations with larger and more well known companies, the IHT decided to maintain control over the HMS certification because there is no organization more committed to further promoting and improving the square footage data used by real estate professionals across the country, and to greatly enhance consumer protection. We hear from professionals all across the country with examples and suggestions on how to improve the gathering and communication of this valuable information. At the end of the day, no other company can offer the level of commitment to furthering this cause. We choose to help promote the improvement of our profession, rather than allow our programs to become simply about profits and business decisions. We are here and committed to the process, and hope you will join us.

Seeking better ways to promote professionalism, basic real estate skills, and to enhance the educational opportunities for one of the most fundamental components of a single-family home.  Other than location, square footage is the most important part of any valuation, offering practitioners new methods to conduct their business ethically, successfully, and profitably. And, striving to improve the information and educational opportunities for the next generation of real estate professionals.

Seeking better ways to promote professionalism, basic real estate skills, consumer protection, and to enhance the educational opportunities for one of the most fundamental components of a single-family home. Striving to improve the information and educational opportunities for the next generation of real estate professionals. In a world moving towards technology and believing “more data” is the answer to most real estate valuation options, we believe only accurate data can provide the path for the future of artificial intelligence and computer learning. Any learning with inaccurate data cannot provide the solution to any problem. The future can only be paved with one language of real estate.

HMS Certification® (Home Measurement Specialist) is an international
designation and a registered certification mark of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.