NEO Wins Gold at The Nationals
In every mature industry, there is a moment each year when excellence is formally recognized.
In film, it is the Academy Awards.
In music, the Grammys.
In residential construction, it is The Nationals.
Presented during the NAHB International Builders’ Show — the largest annual residential construction show in the world — The Nationals are the homebuilding industry’s most prestigious recognition. A win carries the weight of an Oscar — not because of spectacle, but because of who confers it: the National Association of Home Builders, the institutional backbone of the American housing sector.
On February 17, 2026, in Orlando, NEO was awarded the Global Innovation, Research & Exchange Gold Award — the highest honor in its category.
That distinction deserves context.
Why The Nationals Matter
The Nationals are not a technical award. They are a marketing and sales excellence award.
They recognize the companies, platforms, and strategies that most effectively shape how homes and communities are presented, positioned, and sold in the marketplace.
In other words, they recognize those who influence demand.
That is the lens through which this award should be understood.
Paulo Bethencourt Neto, President & CGO of NEO, accepting the Global Innovation, Research & Exchange Gold Award at The Nationals during IBS 2026 in Orlando.
The Real Challenge in New Construction Marketing
New construction is not sold the same way resale homes are sold.
A resale listing is static.
A new-construction community is dynamic.
Phases are released.
Pricing shifts.
Amenities open over time.
Inventory evolves weekly.
Yet, historically, the marketing and distribution of new construction has relied on fragmented systems. Builders update one channel. Brokers circulate another version. International partners translate materials independently. The message loses consistency as it travels.
In a local market, that fragmentation creates friction. In a global market, it creates risk.
New construction should not be concealed behind disconnected systems or uneven access.
Every new home deserves to be seen, compared, and chosen on its merit. Builders deserve a level field. Agents deserve full access to verified inventory. Buyers deserve complete visibility to decide with clarity and confidence.
NEO was built to address that marketing gap. Not by replacing the builder’s brand. Not by inserting itself between builder and buyer. But by structuring and distributing builder-approved information with precision, speed, and multilingual reach.
When marketing is inconsistent, trust erodes.
When marketing is synchronized, confidence increases.
And confidence accelerates decisions.
What This Award Signals
The Global Innovation, Research & Exchange Gold Award does not simply acknowledge a software platform.
It recognizes a new marketing architecture for new construction.
Today, NEO connects more than 50,000 agents and works alongside over 35 associations nationally and internationally.
Builders using NEO can:
• Maintain brand consistency across thousands of distribution points
• Deliver real-time updates through structured data feeds
• Expand multilingual visibility without duplicating marketing spend
• Protect lead integrity while empowering brokers globally
This is marketing discipline at scale.
And at The Nationals, only solutions that move the industry forward are recognized.
Why Timing Matters
The housing market is recalibrating.
Domestic affordability constraints are reshaping buyer behavior. International demand is once again playing a stabilizing role in select markets. Builders are seeking more precise absorption strategies.
In this environment, marketing cannot be improvised.
It must be engineered.
The Nationals Gold Award recognizes that engineered approach — the shift from fragmented promotional tactics to synchronized, builder-controlled distribution.
The Broader Meaning
Recognition at The Nationals places NEO in a very specific category:
Not simply a PropTech platform.
Not merely a listing database.
But a marketing infrastructure that changes how new construction reaches the world.
Its vision is clear: a global new-construction market defined by transparency, equal access, and governed distribution.
The ceremony in Orlando marked a milestone.
What matters more is what it signals:
An industry recognizing that how homes are marketed globally now demands the same sophistication as how they are built.
