Overview of the Evolving Real Estate Technology Landscape
As the years go by, the real estate industry increasingly relies on technology. According to the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) most recent 2021 Real Estate in the Digital Age Survey, a staggering 97% of homebuyers used the Internet to guide their home search at the time the survey was published. In addition, 76% of respondents used mobile phones to search for available properties.
With numbers like those, it’s no surprise that industry professionals began to follow in their clients’ footsteps. The NAR survey found that 82% – 83% of agents reported using digital software for tasks like generating comparative market analysis reports (CMA) and signing contracts. Meanwhile, a growing population of agents (57%) felt that using social media apps on a daily basis served as a key factor in growing their businesses.
Still, since NAR only releases this survey every two years, it’s likely that those numbers and the technologies they highlighted are somewhat out of date. They have almost assuredly changed since the 2021 survey was first released. After all, when the survey’s data was originally collected in 2020, the industry was in a very different place. The Covid-19 pandemic had only just begun and real estate professionals from all sectors were still figuring out how to operate remotely.
In the time since then, we’ve seen an explosion in digital technologies that are altering the way people buy and sell homes, as well as the ways in which the various professionals involved in those transactions operate. For example, it’s now significantly easier to buy a home from across the globe, thanks to videography equipment that allows for virtual showings, e-signing programs, and software that enables remote closings.
However, the technologies mentioned above are really only the tip of the iceberg when you consider the digital transformation that the real estate industry is undergoing in 2023. In an effort to help you get acquainted with the technologies that are impacting today’s professional landscape, this article will discuss five new or evolving proptech tools that every real estate professional should consider for their businesses.
5 Proptech Tools Disrupting the Industry in 2023
With that in mind, here are the proptech tools you should consider adding to your roster this year.
In-depth Property Data
For years, local multiple listing services (MLS) have been a go-to resource for property data, but it almost goes without saying that these systems come with some serious limitations. For one, each area has its own MLS, which severely limits the scope of properties that users can view at one time. For another, each MLS is set up differently, meaning that users may get varying information on properties, depending on which system they use. All those factors can lead to an inconsistent and often frustrating due diligence process, especially if your property search covers a wide geographical area.
Fortunately, there is a way to get consistent property data reports, no matter where you’re searching. Property Navigator, a new product from ATTOM, provides data on over 155 million properties across the United States, which equates to 99% nationwide coverage.
This tool allows you to search and find properties based on 300 distinct data points, including occupancy, equity, default status, and lender. While also providing phone numbers associated with properties for even better targeted marketing and easy communication. Plus, it helps determine property values based on multiple automated valuation models (AVM) and compiles all of that information into consistent and presentation-ready property reports that can be downloaded at a moment’s notice.
All told, it’s bound to help you save time and make more informed decisions during your next property search.
Chatbots and other AI Generative Tools
No matter what sector of the real estate industry you’re in, figuring out creative ways to market your services is likely a regular item on your to-do list. Typically, handling these marketing tasks means either putting in the effort to create your own marketing materials or paying a professional a premium to do the job for you. Either way, these tasks usually require a huge investment of time and/or money.
Fortunately, AI generative tools like ChatGPT Plus now enable you to come up with marketing copy at the push of a button. Essentially, the AI chatbot gathers similar data from the internet that was created by human users and uses it to generate computed responses. Although the program was originally intended to be used for customer service purposes, people have been using it to generate a variety of different kinds of written responses, including slogans, email text, and blog posts.
All you have to do is come up with parameters for what kind of copy you want the chatbot to produce, spell out the instructions, and wait for the results.
Digital Real Estate Assets
While real estate professionals used to be limited to helping themselves and others buy, sell, and manage physical properties, that is no longer the case. Since the unveiling of the Metaverse, an immersive virtual-reality platform, industry pros can now expand their portfolios to include digital real estate assets.
You’ll likely have to do some reading on the Metaverse and cryptocurrency in order to successfully run a digital real estate business, but as long as you’re willing to learn, doing so can help you vastly expand your client base. Right now, virtual real estate assets are selling at a much lower price point than their traditional counterparts, largely due to the fact that the technology is so new. However, that lowered bar has made it possible for more people to invest in real estate, particularly those who have been priced out of the current market.
Ultimately, this tool can be a smart way for you to bring in some extra income while fostering client relationships that can grow over time. If all goes well, your Metaverse clients may even eventually bridge the gap between the virtual world and the physical one.
Enhanced Data Management
While having access to more data is always a plus, managing that data can sometimes become very cumbersome. Traditional data management often involves taking extra steps to load updated data into your system, continuously keep it updated, and organize all of the available versions for recordkeeping. It’s a tiresome and time-consuming process at best.
Luckily, ATTOM Cloud can take care of most of this legwork for you. Put simply, this tool is a data platform that takes all of the hassle out of managing your data. It works in conjunction with standard interfaces, as well as flat files and APIs, to connect your data management system with ATTOM’s data warehouse. Once connected, the platform allows ATTOM to take care of continuously administering and updating your data for you, which leaves you more time to focus on the more important aspects of your work.
Blockchain Technologies
These days, much of the recordkeeping in real estate is done by local authorities. While these authorities typically have checks and balances in place to minimize the number of mistakes that occur when recording new transactions, there is still the potential for human error. However, modern technology has found a way to essentially eradicate these data entry errors while simultaneously making recordkeeping more transparent. It’s all due to blockchain.
At its core, a blockchain is a decentralized, digital ledger that is shared among a computer network. The platforms that enable these technologies, such as the one offered by Lisk, allow people with access to a particular blockchain to see a permanent and unchangeable record of any transactions that have occurred. There’s also the potential to create unique blockchains of your own.
Blockchain is beginning to be used in many industries, but as far as real estate is concerned, it can be a secure way to share property data, collect rental payments, or store documents and keep records, such as deed transfers.
How Using These Tools Will Help Take Operations To The Next Level
Similar to the way in which digital CMA and e-signing technologies were considered innovative when the NAR survey was first released a few years ago, we’re willing to bet that the new proptech tools mentioned in this article will also become commonplace before too long. Still, being ahead of the curve and adapting to technology early is a great way to improve your business practices and get a leg up on the competition.
For some of the tools, like Property Navigator and platforms like Lisk, the goal is to provide you with a better end product, one that helps you stand out from the crowd and puts your services head and shoulders above your competitors. Then, there are tools like ATTOM Cloud and ChatGPT. These tools are aimed at helping make your life easier so that you can focus more of your energies where they’re needed most. Lastly, for its part, the Metaverse can help you expand into a new and relatively unexplored sector of the industry, allowing you to assist a different type of client in their goal of becoming a homeowner.
Take some time to think about where adding technology could be most beneficial to your business. Even though the idea of learning to use a few of these tools and incorporating them into your day-to-day operations may seem a bit intimating at first, they’re very likely to be worth the effort in the end. After all, at the end of the day, consistently improving your business is the key to long-term success.