Rodolfo Delgado is the Co-Founder & CEO of Replay Listings, the first platform to find apartments for rent in NYC focused on unedited videos
getty
Do you remember the last time you left home without your smartphone? Neither do I. We have integrated technology into almost every part of our daily lives. The average U.S. adult spends around three hours on their smartphones every day, from listening to music to scrolling through social media and streaming videos.
Today, technology is changing the way people engage with one of the oldest industries: real estate. It seems like just a few years ago that landlords faxed brokers black-and-white pictures of available apartments and agents would hang them on a bulletin board to display available properties.
Renting an apartment was a lengthy process that required in-person meetings, physically inspecting numerous properties and signing leases in an office space. Although the process might still feel lengthy in many cases, the accelerated rate at which technology has advanced has enabled us to streamline processes and make the apartment rental experience much faster and safer than it was only a few years back.
From Brick-And-Mortar To Smartphones
Residential real estate is reactionary. To remain competitive in a tough market, savvy brokerages have quickly adopted innovative online platforms that allow a faster flow of information and paperless transactions. While real estate agents continue to work from home, brokerages have shifted focus from their offices to their online presence.
MORE FOR YOU
Mergers and acquisitions have aided small and medium brokerages by eliminating fixed costs and sharing expenses. Having an online presence is now more critical than ever.
Numerous brokerages in the U.S are adopting video tours to easily share listings with their clients, social media and distinct advertising platforms. Video tours and virtual reality speed up the process by gathering feedback from potential clients. They also make the process safer by avoiding unnecessary physical inspections or gatherings that could lead to exposure to Covid-19.
Improving Potential Matches
The digitalization of the modern brokerage has allowed customers to use complex filters that improve their search for a new place to call home. A few years back, I had to select an apartment for rent from a printed list of properties attached to a wall. Today, a person can filter available properties online and may get as granular as looking for a two-bedroom rental apartment on the Upper East Side with a dishwasher and a walk-in closet that’s located in a pet-friendly building that has no elevator or doorman.
The ability to get very granular with an individual customer’s potential matches translates to a better quality of life and improved satisfaction during the apartment rental experience. It also shortens the time it takes them to find the perfect home.
Social Real Estate
As the CEO of a proptech company focused on video tours of available apartments, I’ve witnessed firsthand behavioral shifts in the way people search for a new home. It is my firm belief that the real estate industry will continue to move to a digital world with paperless transactions, cloud-based interactions, faster flow of information and a stronger connection with social media. Technology is here to stay when it comes to the way people sell, buy and rent properties.
From sharing video tours of available properties to signing legal documents online, technology has streamlined the process of buying and renting a home. People who fail to adopt new technologies will miss big opportunities.
Forbes Real Estate Council is an invitation-only community for executives in the real estate industry. Do I qualify?