Proptech, or property technology, is changing the real estate industry, helping optimize how the sector buys, sells, markets, and manages properties. In the residential property sector, proptech is helping companies facilitate how people own or rent apartments and houses. And in commercial real estate, proptech is transforming how CRE professionals manage, rent, and sell commercial property assets. Here are the biggest trends in proptech today:

Virtual and augmented reality home tours

Potential renters and buyers save time and money for everyone by first getting acquainted with the property through virtual property tours. The demand for virtual tours has been on the rise since the pandemic and social distancing restrictions. The spike in searches for the term “virtual tour” demonstrates the demand. Zillow reported that listings with 3D property tours were saved by buyers 32% more than listings that didn’t have the feature. Additionally, some 3D tours will allow a prospective tenant to modify the layout of their office/retail space, or even show what the space would look like once it is filled with furniture, computers, and employees.

IoT device smart monitoring

IoT devices help make property managers easier by performing tasks such as data monitoring of premises. Smart devices such as sensors can be placed throughout a building and stream data live, allowing a property manager to remotely access data related to equipment performance, such as cooling and heating. This insight helps reduce maintenance time and predict repairs.

Not only do smart devices such as smart lighting, smart plugs, and smart thermostats provide valuable data and insight, but more people are demanding smart properties. Surveys show that some companies are willing to pay more for smart office properties or those that are LEED Certified. Proptech focused on smart monitoring and automation also creates energy-saving capabilities by giving buyers and renters insight into their energy usage. These days, more people are conscious of their consumption habits and how those impact the environment. Recent studies show that 85% of consumers are willing to pay more for sustainability as people want to make greener choices.

AI and data

The smarter the building, the more data and insight data managers can gain about tenants’ behavior patterns, energy consumption peaks, traffic, logistics, and equipment states. Data that’s fed into AI-based real estate software can then help make better business predictions, save money, increase productivity, and improve user experience. And by enhancing the experience, the company's reputation and revenues improve.

eSigning real estate agreements

Property sellers and buyers have recognized the benefits of eSigning real estate agreements and forms. Signing dozens of paper documents and agreements is becoming a thing of the past as digital signing practices save precious time and energy. Going paperless and eSigning also provides remote flexibility. The practice dramatically lowers costs, allowing real estate agencies to save on printing, gas, travel, and document storage.

Digital property passports

Property passports are digital logs of property information that simplify selling or renting out properties. The digital platform stores all information relating to an individual property. The property would have its own unique data file, which will be maintained by the tenant or owner of the property. Not only would implementing a property passport framework standardize the industry, but it would also centralize it and provide the real estate market with more transparency and trust.

If you’d like to know more how PropTech can benefit your investments please do not hesitate to reach out to info@cbicommercial.com