Courtesy of Michael Worthington of BrightDoor
RALEIGH, NC – The coronavirus, known internationally as COVID-19, has impacted every aspect of life as we know it. In many areas of the United States, governments have put Stay-at-Home protocols in place to ensure that people stay safe, healthy, and, most importantly, at home to flatten the curve of this deadly virus.
Despite the massive changes that have been seen on a global scale, life is going on, and many people are learning ways to adapt to their new normal. For instance, much of the digital workforce has begun to work remotely without much pause in productivity. Other, more people-focused industries, like real estate, have also been innovating the ways that they connect with their customers.
The real estate industry relies on steady and honest communication which, before the outbreak of COVID-19, was done primarily face-to-face. Even though that’s not an option right now, there are still plenty of people who need to buy and sell homes. So, in order to accommodate this audience, real estate agents have moved all of their communication efforts online to stay connected to their clients.
Even though the real estate industry has experienced a lot of changes recently, people can still successfully buy and sell homes. If you’re ready to look for a new property, here are three ways to stay connected with your house hunt during COVID-19. Continue reading to learn more!
Be In Constant Communication with Your Real Estate Agent
During a typical house hunt, your real estate agent is your biggest ally, confidant, and sounding board. Now, as you’re navigating both a house hunt and a global pandemic, they can be an even greater resource to you, so it’s important to stay in constant communication with them.
Your real estate agents’ goal is to ensure that you make the best decision possible when buying a home, and that goes double during this situation. They are working overtime to stay up-to-date with all the breaking news and protocols that are being released to the public and throughout the real estate industry, so they are a great resource to have when you’re not sure how to proceed in your house hunt.
Additionally, now that everything is much more uncertain than it was even a month ago, it’s important that you have open and honest conversations with your real estate agent so everyone remains on the same page. Whether you’re ready to make an offer on a home, want to continue assessing homes, or want to pause your house hunt indefinitely, it’s crucial that you let your agent know so that they can act accordingly.
Continue to Browse Through Houses That You Could Call Home
In the same vein of staying connected to your real estate agent, you should also stay connected with your house hunt. Right now, it’s easy to feel distracted with all the news and information that’s being spread, but if you are in the market to purchase a home, it’s important to remain focused on your goal.
Now that you have more time to spend in front of a screen, you can focus your efforts on a few areas that you may not have had time for previously. For instance, you can reevaluate the items on your must-have list to ensure that you are looking for homes that you really love. As you’re looking at homes online, you can take the time to think about how you’d actually live in it. This will not only help narrow down your top choices, but it will help you build deeper connections with the house you may soon call home.
Also, just because you’re house hunting remotely doesn’t mean that you can’t find out important information about the homes that have caught your eye. If you want to find out what a neighborhood or area is like, go online and do some research, look at the area on Google Streetview, and ask your real estate agent to pull comps to see what homes sold recently in the area.
No matter what, continue doing everything you can to ensure that your house hunt can continue going smoothly.
Trust in Technology That Will Help You Not Miss a Beat
When you’re ready to finally tour a home, before, you only needed to schedule an appointment and drive to the property. Now, however, everyone is expected to stay home for the foreseeable future and that includes real estate agents. In order to keep your home touring process moving smoothly, it’s important to remain flexible when touring and rely on technology whenever possible.
Fortunately, there is an option that allows you to get a 360-degree view of the homes you’re interested in – HomeRover. HomeRover is a live video home touring solution that allows you to go beyond the listing to help continue your home search in a proactive and innovative way. With the app, house hunters can stay organized, gather feedback, and verify their interest in a property in real-time. The best part is that, with HomeRover, anyone can conduct the tour – even the seller!
Each HomeRover tour is unique because whoever is guiding it is able to look at the list of features you want to see and pay close attention to them as they make their way through the house. That way, you’ll be able to vet your interest in real-time while remaining safely indoors. Additionally, HomeRover allows you to capture, replay and share tours so you can revisit them later and get second opinions from your loved ones.
If You Are Looking for a New Home, Give HomeRover a Try
COVID-19 has made day-to-day life much more uncertain, but if you’re in the market for a new home, this process doesn’t have to hit pause. With HomeRover, you can still have the same engaging connection with your house hunt while you’re also staying safe and healthy.
HomeRover is a free download from the Apple App Store® and Google Play.