Vacation rentals giant HomeAway has made an acquisition today—social vacation rentals platform Second Porch. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Second Porch, which launched in 2009, helps you find and share vacation rentals through your social circle on Facebook. The site’s Facebook app allows owners create a free property listing that can be broadcast to your Facebook friends. The app also aggregates all listings onto a map from your friends (owners can also choose to let anyone on Facebook see their listings) and lets people search for rentals by location, rate or amenities. And of course, you can search or filter by properties owned by friends.
The app also offers a complimentary website which has similar functionality. HomeAway says that it will integrate Second Porch’s social technology across its network of vacation rental sites. Eventually HomeAway will migrate Second Porch’s users over to its network.
HomeAway recently filed for a $230 million IPO, and has raised close to a half a billion dollars in venture funding. The company recently stated in its S-1 filing that it will pursue acquisitions to help broaden its market and technologies, so we can expect more purchases in the future.