Here’s What The Future of Real Estate Looks Like

or realtors, the name of the game is buying and selling property. To close more deals, real estate agents need to stay one step ahead of their competition. These emerging technologies can help.

Blockchain

This decentralized, distributed database could be the next big thing. Blockchain is a digital ledger that enables transactions made with bitcoin, or another cryptocurrency, to be recorded chronologically and publicly—creating a secure list of records, or blocks. Mass adoption is a few years away, but Deloitte predicts that blockchain could be a game changer in real estate:

Blockchain is built on the principles drawn from cryptography and peer-to-peer networking. It allows unique monetary data to be exchanged via a distributed ledger (a record book of all transactions). Blockchain is a technology that allows people who don’t know each other to trust a shared record of events. This shared record, or ledger, is distributed to all participants in a network who use their computers to validate transactions and thus remove the need for a trusted third party to intermediate. A copy of the entire blockchain is available to all participants in the network and transactions on the blockchain are time stamped, making it useful for tracking and verifying information.

A blockchain represents a total shift away from the traditional ways of doing things. It places trust and authority in a distributed network rather than in a powerful central institution. In a blockchain based world of transactions, there is no need for the middlemen of finance — banks, governments, insurers, brokers, notaries and even paper currency. The blockchain takes this part of the transaction over from the professionals. It allows unique monetary data to be exchanged via a distributed ledger. The entire history of these transactions could be followed through the blockchain and is available for the public, so the blockchain provides full transparency.

Think of a house or piece of land as a “coin.” This coin could be exchanged using digital currency on a blockchain. Besides providing total transparency, blockchain also would decrease the risk of fraud and speed up the process of buying or selling a property.

360 Video

‍Want to show clients every square foot of a property—before they step foot on it? All you need is Insta360—a $200 camera attachment—to turn your smartphone into a 360 virtual reality camera and give immersive video tours. There are other 360 video tools, but Insta360 is the leader and one of the easiest to use.

With an Insta360 camera, users can take 360-degree photos and videos in high definition, and live-stream their experiences directly onto Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social platforms. When viewed in a VR headset, Insta360 experiences can transport people into places and moments they’ve never before imagined.

Creating a 360 video tour used to be an expensive production ($300-$1000 per property), but now the technology is more accessible than ever.
See for yourself what is possible:

Augmented Reality‍

Take 360 video a step further: bring the video to life. That’s what augmented reality does, merging the virtual world with the physical world. With an augmented reality app, you can:
1. Show a property’s interior and exterior in 3-D.
2. Use animations to make the experience interactive.
3. Show structural layers of a home or building.
4. Share interactive property information.
5. Show sites of any size.
6. Access data on a property and marketplace.
7. Add a 360 panoramic photo to any part of the property.
8. Invite your client to a virtual helicopter flight.
9. Bring to life properties that aren’t built yet.
10. Provide calls to actions for print ads.
Think creative. AR applications in real estate present huge opportunities.

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Here are of some of the best augmented reality campaigns for inspiration.

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Drones‍

Want to turn your property marketing video into a cinematic experience? Use a drone. You can find a good one starting at $400 or hire a professional production company starting at around $800-1200 per property, and nothing provides a sweeping, bird’s-eye view of a home and grounds better than a drone camera.

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Mobile Stories‍

We’ve come a long way from the days of newspaper classifieds for real estate. Now, a house can be built in 24 hours with a 3-D printer, and a property listing can be an experience. Use a mobile storytelling app like Evrybit or Steller to turn your listing into an interactive story with audio, video, photos and text. You even could monetize a listing by adding sponsored media to the story stream and embedding the listing on your website.

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This is the age of disruption. Emerging technologies have the power to reinvent the real estate industry. To learn about innovative and creative ways to grow your real estate business, check out Luxury Presence.