PropTech — also known as property technology, refers to any technology that enables technological innovation within the real estate market. Real estate professionals use PropTech in a variety of ways. Digital solutions can help simplify and speed up property searches, purchases, sales, and investing, optimizes operational tasks, enhance asset management, and more.
The PropTech landscape is continually evolving — in the first nine months of 2021, PropTech funding reached $7.1bn.
In this post, we look at four of the biggest PropTech solutions for 2022.
Blockchain
While not everyone sees the value in crypto, few people can argue against the benefit of blockchain in the world of real estate. Set to continue be a big PropTech trend for 2022, blockchain facilitates the tokenization and trading of real estate assets — in a similar way to cryptocurrency trading.
The process is reportedly fast and secure, thanks to the use of digitalized smart contracts that can’t be modified once completed and accurately record payments. Moreover, as Consensus note, thanks to the bolstered connectivity between digital assets and related networks, buyers and investors get greater access to secondary market opportunities and benefit from improved liquidity.
Artificial Intelligence
AI (artificial intelligence) is one of the most popular forms of PropTech on the market. AI employs data collection and analytics to automate and enhance business processes.
AI is used in variety of ways and will continue to be big news in 2022.
Predominantly, AI is used to gather data on properties and their occupants. For example, Skyline AI makes use of a proprietary AI gathers data on commercial properties to provide in-depth insights into assets.
These data-generated insights can help real estate professionals make smarter investment decisions — helping them to find the right commercial properties in the right neighborhoods.
In contrast, AI-fueled data insights can also be used to understand and manage building usage. For example, AI has become a key tool in helping to reduce crowding in office buildings to ensure social distancing was upheld throughout lockdown. By monitoring the number of people in hallways and office rooms, AI can report on over-crowding and help ensure compliance.
Virtual viewings for renters and buyers
With the ongoing lockdowns, there have been plenty of restrictions on property viewings. To keep viewings up, many agents have turned to virtual property viewings to show homes. Virtual viewings involve a digital property viewing via video steaming.
Many agents have found virtual viewings convenient ways to show buyers properties. In particular, 3D virtual viewings can give people a real sense of a property without having to visit — interested buyers can walk through the property and view it from different vantages, as they would in an in-person viewing.
Virtual viewings are also becoming popular among renters, as Crunchbase highlights: “The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the normalization of virtual tours and signings, and now there’s more of an opportunity to invest in technology that appeals to the Gen Z renter.”
While life may slowly be returning to normal, many agents will still make use of virtual viewings for the time they save and the immersive experience they can provide to buyers and renters that show an initial interest in a property. Virtual tours give prospective buyers and renters control, enabling self-guided tours without pressure from in-person agents.
Real estate data and analytics
As Deloitte noted, data is the new gold in the world of real estate. Real estate data has long helped real estate buyers, sellers, and investors make smarter, data-informed decisions.
Property data provides a comprehensive look at commercial and residential properties in a target location. From rich data on property characteristics that can help determine a property’s value to insights significant building works undertaken on a property with historic and current building permits.
ATTOM provides an in-depth look at more than 155 million residential and commercial properties across the U.S. Our solution offers data on property tax and deeds, local neighborhoods, mortgages, foreclosures, property listings, schools, boundaries, natural hazards, and environmental risks.
The Best PropTech Innovations for 2022
The world of PropTech is set to grow in 2022, with several new solutions set to flood the market and more capital is predicted to be invested into the space than ever before. As we explore above, blockchain, AI, real estate data and analytics, and virtual viewings are key areas to keep your eye on for the year ahead.
