I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If you aren’t embracing new technology, you are going to get left behind. In today’s modern world, this statement rings truer than ever. The digital age is taking over every industry, and real estate is no exception.
Now, searching for vacation rentals, homes and commercial properties via mobile apps is the norm — and real estate technology doesn’t stop there. Once buyers and renters find the properties of their dreams, they want tech to be readily available throughout the home or commercial space. Due to the increasing interest and demand for smart features in real estate, proptech is one of the fastest-growing investment sectors in the world.
Proptech allows tenants and landlords (as well as all other individuals involved with buildings) to become more interactive with spaces. People can live more and work more in physical buildings thanks to real estate technology. Here’s how these innovative features are changing the way tenants and landlords interact with their buildings:
1. The Mobile Movement
Regarding proptech, everything — and I do mean everything — is built for mobile. Property managers are able to adjust the temperatures in their buildings whether they’re sitting in their office or on vacation halfway across the world. These new advancements are making previous proptech like the Nest thermostat old news. Now, people expect to pull up to their homes and have their cell phone send a signal to open the garage door, automatically have lights turn on upon their entrance, already have the temperature perfectly adjusted and be greeted with their favorite song when they walk in.
Business spaces are no different. For example, apps and software are available so that commercial real estate tenants have real-time public transportation tracking, smart building access and simple lines of communication to property managers. All in all, these advancements enhance the tenant experience. This kind of technology is available today, so don’t wait. Landlords should incorporate these innovations while they’re still hot.
2. Say It And Get It
Seriously, it’s that simple. In the very near future, property tech will be controlled less and less by apps on our phones and more by voice-activated products. Just tell your office Alexa, Siri or Google Hub what you want, and you can expect to have your building respond accordingly. These devices will begin to rule real estate and the workplace, providing next-level ease of living in all the buildings that you spend your day in.
To stay on top of the trend, market voice-integrated tech while renting your building’s spaces. Whether your tenants utilize your CRE space for retail purposes, co-working areas or property rentals, there’s something for everyone to gain from proptech.
3. Outdated Offices No More
Co-working spaces are becoming incredibly popular. In fact, the number of co-working spaces more than doubled between 2015 and 2018. There’s no doubt that co-working spaces are favored by millennials and freelancing workers everywhere. And now, the office is becoming smarter than ever before.
Flexible properties, like co-working spaces, provide companies with greater efficiencies and minimal waste of resources. Plus, people actually want to interact with these spaces. Members thrive in these buildings, which typically offer plenty of means of interaction, such as coffee shops, community events, private rooms for meetings and so much more. As a landlord or manager, think about adapting your space to enhance tenant experience, so you can achieve increased tenant loyalty.
Management can interact with co-working buildings in new ways too. Drones can now be used for property inspection, online application process are widely used and social media presence is a critical aspect of building awareness. Consider implementing these additions to your property, as proptech is constantly evolving. For instance, WeWork tracks data in order to understand how their spaces are being used and how they can improve. Ultimately, this drives innovation up to create top-notch tenant experiences.
4. High-Tech Cars Are Changing Real Estate Structure
The increased popularity of self-driving cars, high-tech car features and driving services like Uber and Lyft are disrupting daily commutes for the better. Now, how we get to and from different physical spaces in our day is changing in a way that hasn’t been seen since the original introduction of the motor vehicle.
Because autonomous cars — along with other high-tech vehicle features — are arriving, buildings will also need to modernize to accommodate for this. Expect to see fewer parking lots and ramps in front of your building. Instead, bigger and easily accessible drop-off areas should be developed in front of your apartment or workplace.
In addition, retailers are using geotracking data to determine where their customers are coming from and going to after they park and shop in these spaces. And, geotracking can be used to push ads through clients’ mobile devices. Although some may be wary of these advancements, geotracking allows businesses to modify in order to best fit their ideal consumer. As a landlord, if you aren’t taking advantage of this technology, you are fighting with one hand tied behind your back.
The Bottom Line
We will continue seeing incredible advancements in proptech, and there’s no reason we need to wait. Tenants should all be demanding more from their landlords, real estate builders and property designers. By pushing the boundaries, we can all make a fast transition to the high-tech lifestyles we desire.
Consider that big investments are being made in proptech — in fact, SoftBank invested a sizable $4.4 billion into WeWork and $450 million into Compass. The real estate industry is changing, so we can better interact with our buildings, and the numbers support it. Be sure to consider these four ways to interact with physical spaces during your day-to-day ventures, and continue to expect bigger and better changes in proptech.