2020 has been a challenging year for real estate professionals, but ever agile – many have looked to PropTech this year to fulfill business transactions and strengthen their processes. What does 2021 have in store for PropTech? Will many of the technologies that helped real estate professionals weather the COVID storm continue to be used in 2021?
In this post, we explore the top PropTech trends for 2021. We’ll also give you an insight into four of the best solutions available – so you can put these trends into action.
A New Year in Property Technology
In 2020, real estate professionals for every industry have grown to rely on PropTech – following mass lockdowns across the U.S. When lockdown put a stop to in-person viewings, PropTech was there to take the reins in the form of virtual viewings. Moreover, online property auctions also began to gain in popularity among home sellers and buyers looking for safe and convenient ways to sell and purchase a property in lockdown.
The adoption of IoT in a bid to fight COVID by monitoring both the cleanliness and occupancy of office spaces, has also accelerated the adoption of PropTech in the commercial sector.
What was once a slow adoption of technology in the industry has now become commonplace – accelerating the use of PropTech in many areas of commercial and residential real estate. Real estate professionals have grown to rely on PropTech and this trend will carry through into 2021.
Real-Time Property Data
In 2020, people became more reliant on property data to give them reliable insights into the changing fluctuations of the real estate market. This data proved pivotal in guiding investment choices, providing insight into areas of the housing market that were struggling vs going strong, and supplying real estate agents with property and neighborhood data for home buyers and sellers when in-person viewings and tours of neighborhoods were limited.
More and more real estate professionals will continue to rely on real-time property data to inform their understanding of the real estate market in 2021.
Solution: ATTOM
ATTOM is one of the leading providers of property data in the market, with more than 29.6 billon rows of transactional-level data and more than 9,000 discrete data attributes, ATTOM provides the most robust Property Data, Neighborhood, Boundary, Analytics, and Derived Data for more than 155 million U.S. residential and commercial properties.
Many real estate professionals turned to ATTOM for data on the current state of the property market throughout the COVID crisis in 2020. Throughout 2020, the ATTOM team provided market reports on home sale prices, foreclosures, and opportunity zones boasting the highest home prices – providing a snapshot into key elements of the real estate market.
Virtual Tours
Virtual tours have become an integral part of the PropTech and real estate landscape over the past year. Will they continue to shape the landscape in the coming year? We think so. Many estate agents have come to depend on the ease and efficiency of a virtual tour.
While they’ll never replace an in-person viewing (where and when they are possible), virtual solutions will continue to be a helpful tool in the early stages of the home selling process – drawing in new leads and filtering out uninterested buyers early on – saving estate agents time and money in the process.
Solution: Matterport
Matterport offer 3D virtual property tours, allowing interested buyers to visualize living in a property without leaving home. The team gives you the ability to fully customize your virtual tours with elements such as custom floor plans and accompanying photo galleries. The tours are easy to navigate and can be viewed from multiple angles – giving prospective buyers a great view of the property. In addition, 74% of real estate agents say Matterport helps them win more listings.
Property Management Embraces Digital
This year has seen a huge spike in digitized property applications, electronic payments, and online maintenance requests. These processes are here to stay in 2021, thanks to the convenience they offer property managements and their clients.
Solution: The Digital Property Management app
Buildium gives you the ability to manage all of your properties, tenants, and contractors from one easy-to-use interface. The software allows you to organize and manage all of your everyday property management processes from one platform – from addressing maintenance issues to approving lease applications.
PropTech at Home: Attracting Gen Z Renters
In 2021, more and more Gen Zers will be entering the property market, as the younger generation join the workforce. Those renting to this rising demographic should think tech first when considering how to attract renters. As the most tech-focused generation yet, Gen Z renters will look for homes that are enhanced with tech offerings.
As such, smart features in the home are one of the best ways to attract Gen Z in 2021. Conscious about their impact on the planet, as well as tech-savvy, Gen Zers will be impressed by smart thermostats that allow them to manage and optimize their energy usage at home. Smart lights and appliances that can be controlled from a smartphone are two other great features to draw in Gen Z renters this year.
Solution: ecobee – Smart Thermostat with Voice Control
Ecobee is a leading smart meter with voice control. Compatible with both Android and Apple iOS, the smart meter can cut energy costs by 23%.
Your Guide to PropTech in 2021
PropTech has grown exponentially throughout 2021, with technology continuing to replace many manual processes for professionals across the sector. Real estate agents and investors alike have come to rely on PropTech for its convenience, marketability, and ability to provide unique and trusted insights into the real estate market in 2020 – its irreplaceable value won’t be forgotten as we enter 2021.
