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Andy Florance

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

CoStar Group

Washington, DC, USA

Andy Florance
Stephen Fitzpatrick
Vertical Aerospace
Tom Florio
ENTtech Media Group LLC

Andy’s Biography

Andy Florance is the Founder & Chief Executive Officer of CoStar Group. He also serves on the firm’s Board of Directors. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., CoStar Group has offices in 15 countries around the world and a staff of more than 5,500 globally.

Founded in 1986, CoStar Group quickly found itself at the forefront of transforming how commercial real estate professionals access, use and share information. Andrew pioneered the concept of commercial real estate firms outsourcing research and analysis functions to a third-party information provider, leading CoStar to become the industry’s first independent research firm.

Leading the firm since its days as a startup, Andy has guided CoStar Group from its IPO in 1998 to its recent listing on the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ 100 Index. He has continually been recognized as an innovative executive, leading to numerous honors, including Forbes' Most Innovative Leaders, SP 200’s top industry leaders and Commercial Observer's 30 Most Powerful People in Commercial Real Estate Proptech. In addition, CoStar has been named one of Forbes Fast...
Andy Florance is the Founder & Chief Executive Officer of CoStar Group. He also serves on the firm’s Board of Directors. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., CoStar Group has offices in 15 countries around the world and a staff of more than 5,500 globally.

Founded in 1986, CoStar Group quickly found itself at the forefront of transforming how commercial real estate professionals access, use and share information. Andrew pioneered the concept of commercial real estate firms outsourcing research and analysis functions to a third-party information provider, leading CoStar to become the industry’s first independent research firm.

Leading the firm since its days as a startup, Andy has guided CoStar Group from its IPO in 1998 to its recent listing on the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ 100 Index. He has continually been recognized as an innovative executive, leading to numerous honors, including Forbes' Most Innovative Leaders, SP 200’s top industry leaders and Commercial Observer's 30 Most Powerful People in Commercial Real Estate Proptech. In addition, CoStar has been named one of Forbes Fast Tech 25 and Fortune magazine’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies. Central to CoStar’s growth is its investments in industry leading companies, such as online commercial real estate marketplace, LoopNet, Apartments.com, Homes.com and data benchmarking and analytics company, STR.

Andy is an active board member, with a focus on professional advancement and education. He serves on the board of Management Leaders for Tomorrow, a nonprofit transforming leadership channels by preparing Black, Latinx and Native American talent to secure high-growth positions. He has also served on the boards of many schools in the D.C. area, as well as Children’s National Health System and the National Building Museum.

Andy earned a BA in Economics from Princeton University and was awarded an honorary doctorate from Virginia Commonwealth University.
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Andy’s Newsfeed

RisMedia
Growth, Competition and Profit: Is the Listing Portal Pace Sustainable?

In two discussions at RISMedia’s recent CEO & Leadership Exchange, in Washington, D.C., RISMedia Founder & CEO John Featherston first engaged CoStar Group Founder & CEO Andy Florance for his views on “Who Will Win the Portal Challenge and Why.” 

Washingtonian
DC’s 2023 Tech Titans

The Washingtonian's list includes the most important and innovative leaders in DC’s tech scene. CoStar Group and its founder & CEO, Andy Florance, are honored for their continued success, which includes a forthcoming research-and-tech campus in Richmond.

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Andy’s Background

CoStar Group
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
May 1986 - Present
Washington, DC, USA
CoStar Group, Inc. is the leading provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and online marketplaces. CoStar conducts thorough, ongoing research to produce and maintain the largest and most comprehensive database of commercial real estate information.

Andy’s Gallery

Board Positions

CoStar Group
Board of Directors
Washington, DC, USA
CoStar Group, Inc. is the leading provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and online marketplaces.
Management Leadership of Tomorrow
Governing Board
Jan 2017 - Present
Washington, DC, USA
Launched in 2002 Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT) is a national nonprofit that is transforming the leadership pipelines of more than 120 leading organizations by driving breakthrough results for individuals and institutions.
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Previous Board Positions

St. Albans School
Board of Trustees
2015 - 2018
Washington, DC, USA
St. Albans School is a private, all boys day and boarding school. For more than a century, it has offered a distinctive educational experience for young men in grades 4 through 12.
Children's National
Board of Directors
2014 - Jun 2017
Washington, DC, USA
Children's National Hospital has innovated pediatric healthcare around the US and world for more than 150 years. Serving the nation's children, the hospital is one of the top 10 pediatric hospitals in the United States.
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Media

CoStar Group Partners with Richmond Public Schools to Provide School Supplies for More than 35,000 Students
Aug 2023
New York, NY, USA
“As the one of the largest employers in Richmond, CoStar Group is thrilled to continue to invest in the Richmond community through providing students in need with the tools they need to thrive,” said Andy Florance. "We’re excited to be able to help set the groundwork for academic success as students return to school this Fall.”
Costar Group’s Andy Florance Wins Gold Stevie® Award In 2023 International Business Awards®
Aug 2023
New York, NY, USA
Andy Florance was named the winner of a Gold Stevie® Award in the Executive of the Year – Real Estate category. He was also honored with a Silver Stevie® Award in the Best Entrepreneur – Real Estate category.
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Interviews

CoStar Group CEO on commercial REIT weakness, office vacancy and residential market
Jul 2023
New York, NY, USA
Andy Florance, CoStar Group CEO, joins ‘Closing Bell: Overtime’ to discuss company earnings, commercial REITs impact on business.
Costar—Friend or Foe? Founder and CEO Andy Florance Answers this and More in Exclusive Interview
Dec 2022
Among a range of topics relating to CoStar and the larger real estate market, Andy Florance discusses what the company's role will be as a residential real estate portal player in the U.S., and how the company's residential portal Homes.com would stick to the 'your listing, your lead' principle.
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Publications

Commentary: VCU and VCU Health are leading in education, health care and student success
Co-author
Aug 2023
Richmond, VA, USA
Andy Florance and co-author, Todd P. Haymore, discuss the important work done and accolades received by Virginia Commonwealth University and VCU Health. In addition, the two authors express their support of VCU Health ending its participation in a development known as the Clay Street Project.

Memberships

Meridian International Center
Member
Washington, DC, USA
Meridian is a nonpartisan, nonprofit diplomacy center that links leaders through culture and collaboration to drive global solutions.

Awards & Recognition

20th Annual International Business Awards®
Executive of the Year & Best Entrepreneur | Real Estate
2023
The Stevie® Awards are the world's premier business awards. They were created to honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals worldwide. Andy Florance was honored with a Gold Stevie® Award for Executive of the Year and Best Entrepreneur award in the Real Estate category.
DC’s 2023 Tech Titans
Honoree
2023
Washington, DC, USA
The Washingtonian's list includes the most important and innovative leaders in DC’s tech scene. CoStar Group and its founder & CEO, Andy Florance, are honored for their continued success, which includes a forthcoming research-and-tech campus in Richmond.
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Training & Management Courses

Harvard Business School
Corporate Governance Program
1999
Cambridge, MA, USA
The Making Corporate Boards More Effective program helps participants gain a deeper understanding of the board's responsibilities in areas such as finance, strategy, executive compensation and compliance.
MIT | Center for Real Estate
Real Estate Capital Markets
1997
Cambridge, MA, USA
MIT’s Center for Real Estate (CRE) investigates the real estate practice and transaction from initial concept to market realization.

Speaking Engagements

Who Will Win the Portal Challenge and Why: One-on-One With Andy Florance
Featured Speaker
Sep 2023
Washington, DC, USA
CoStar CEO Andy Florance joined John Featherston to offer his unfiltered view of the current real estate portal environment and the factors that will lead to ultimate success for both real estate professionals and consumers.
Virginia Commonwealth University Commencement Address
Keynote Speaker
May 2019
Richmond, VA, USA
In his address, Andy Florance shared how he overcame the odds to become a successful business executive, and shared how adversity can be an important driver of success. At the ceremony, Florance was also awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.

Community Engagement

Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation
Board of Trustees
Washington, DC, USA
Founded in 1893, the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation (PECF) was chartered by Congress over 100 years ago to promote the causes of religion, education and charity.

Press Releases

CoStar Group Signs Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) Commitment for Emissions Reduction
May 2023
SBTi is a joint initiative of environmental impact tracking organization CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute (WRI) and the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF). “At CoStar Group we are proud of our commitments to reducing our environmental impact, and this is one of the pillars of our ESG goals,” said Andy Florance, Founder & CEO. "
CoStar Group CEO and Founder Andy Florance Named as Top Ten on SP200 Real Estate's Most Powerful and Influential List
Jan 2023
New York, NY, USA
The 10th annual Swanepoel Power 200 (SP 200) analyzes and ranks the top 245 industry leaders. The recognition of Andy Florance on the list comes on the heels of a banner year for the CoStar Group.
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Andy’s Education

Virginia Commonwealth University
Doctor of Humane Letters
Princeton University
B.A. | Economics