Harcourts Foundation In 1888, John Bateman Harcourt opened the door on what would become the first ever Harcourts office of the fastest growing real estate group in Australasia, and beyond. For 125 years we’ve proudly worked in our communities everyday to fulfill people’s dreams of achieving a home. Alongside that we have also built a long and enthusiastic history of supporting thousands of community initiatives to benefit tens of thousands of our neighbours.