It’s not surprising to know that the real estate industry has been one of the main adaptors of technology and is evidenced in how the industry survived and thrived since the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic.
The shift to the virtual business modality has also seen tech and other related companies vying for business from small to large businesses, offering new ways and techniques for those choosing to willingly transcend and thrive in the new normal.
Changing market behaviours
While common knowledge dictates that the shift in the technology landscape has were dominated by the younger and newer generations, surprisingly the older segments of society that were thought to stick to their traditional practices have also engaged in this new environment.
This has changed the status quo and more people- both young and old alike- are now into digital paperwork and video or remote interactions from collecting payments to client communication almost everything that was previously done in-person can now be done virtually and online.
As a result of this shift, statistics have shown that urban real estate growth has been seen outpacing suburban prices.
Adapting to the virtual environment
Very recently, a number of real estate tech companies has invested in online portals and apps, one of which is data and business intelligence to provide real estate businesses with the capability to provide estimations of property values.
Within such portals, homebuyers can interact and work with in-house real estate agents to offer a seamless and worry-free virtual experience. This shifts the focus on homebuyers who can benefit from the technological shift that is sweeping the industry, such as a robust multiple listing service (MLS).
Studies have shown that a number of agencies have already followed suit and the majority- if not all agencies- are expected to integrate a virtual platform for their businesses within the year or so.
This is a no-brainer and the homebuyer is definitely the focus of real estate tech. Virtual experiences are becoming more immersive and very close- if not strikingly similar- to the real thing.
Listings have gone digital and homebuyers are now capable of finding new homes without leaving the comforts of their own houses.
Rather than spend an entire weekend exploring for potential finds, searching for multiple sites online is more convenient, cheap, and won’t eat up a lot of your time.
The role of brokerages
The more inventories that are being managed by brokerages, the fewer a la carte options become available to homebuyers.
The direction of aggregating multiple brokerages and agencies through a unified MLS can simplify matters for homebuyers in terms of buying decisions, mortgage, insurance, and lender options.
Real estate tech will also allow agencies to incorporate more features that add value to their clients, such as integrating a single channel for all related payments such as home warranties, links to maintenance services, utilities, taxes, and more.
With all these, the real estate industry may be able to provide lesser options in terms of finding a suitable real estate agency, while providing clients with better online security and better experiences.
It’s time to adapt and transcend
These developments should serve as a clarion call to real estate agents that the need to step up and adapt is becoming inevitable. Remember that a big factor of real estate tech is focused on homebuyers and agents must leverage this to win more clients to their fold.